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1        W     N^          V 

1 

WAKING'S 

BOOK  OF  THE  FARM; 

BEING  A  REVISED  EDITION  OF 

THE  HANDY-BOOK  OF  HUSBANDRY. 

A  GUIDE  FOR  FARMERS. 


CONTAINING    PUACTICAL   INFORKATION   IN   REGARD   TO   BUYING   OR    LEASING  A  FARM — WHEN  AND 
WHERE    TO   BUY  —  BEGINNING    OPERATIONS — KEY-NOTE   OP    PRACTICAL     FARMING — FENCES 

AND     FARM     BI'ILIUXGS — FARMING     IMPI.EJIEXTS DRAINAGE     AND     TILE-MAKING 

PLOWING,  SITBSOILING,  TRENCHING,  AND  PULVERIZING  THE  SURFACESOIL — MAN- 
URES—  ROTATION    OF   CROPS — ROOT  CROPS — FORAGE    CROPS — LIVE   STOCK, 
INCLUDING    CATTLE,   HORSES,  SHEEP,  SWINE,   POULTRY,  ETC.,   WITH 
WINTER    MANAGEMENT,  FEKDING,  PASTURING,  SOILING,  ETC. 
— DIRECTIONS    FOR    MEDICAL   AND    SURGICAL     TREAT- 
MENT  OF    THE    SAME — THE    DAIRY   IN     ALL    ITS 
DEPARTMENTS  —  USEFUL     TABLES     FOB 
FARMERS,  GARDENERS,  ETC.,  ETC. 


By  GEORGE  E.  WARIXG,  Jr., 

OF  OGDEX   FARM, 
Consulting  Engineer  for  Sanitary  and  Agricultural  Works. 


WITH   ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PHILADELPHIA: 
PORTER    &    COAXES, 


'^^ 


Eutered  accordiDg  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1877,  by 

POUTER  &  COAXES, 

In  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington. 


PREFACE. 


I  HAVE  on  my  shelves  an  old  book — worm-eaten  and  time-worn— 
which  professes  to  teach  every  art  connected  with  the  domestic  ani- 
mals of  a  hundred  years  ago,  from  horses  and  cattle  to  goats  and 
fighting-cocks,  including  their  diseases,  their  habits,  and  their  uses, 
together  with  every  art  belonging  to  the  complete  education  of  a 
sporting  man  of  the  last  century; — all  written  "By  a  Country 
Gentleman //w//  his  own  experience. ^^ 

Such  originality  cannot  be  claimed  for  the  present  work ;  for 
while  none  of  the  operations  of  the  farm  are  unfamiliar  to  me,  and 
while  I  profess  to  be,  by  education  and  experience,  a  practical 
farmer,  I  have  tried  to  tell  in  its  pages  not  only  what  I  have  learned 
over  my  work, — which,  in  the  case  of  any  individual,  is  woefully 
little, — but  also  what  I  have  gained  from  the  recorded  experience  of 
other  farmers,  who  have  been  accumulating,  little  by  little  for  2000 
years  and  more,  the  precious  sap  with  which  our  tree  of  knowledge 
is  fed. 

I  have  endeavored,  too,  to  look  beyond  the  farmer  who  has  done 
so  much  for  the  unfolding  of  the  riches  that  Nature,  our  universal 
mother,  showers  upon  her  industrious  sons,  and  to  question,  as  well, 
those  devoted  friends  of  the  farmer,  the  chemist  and  the  student, 
who  ask  from  Nature  something  more  than  her  material  gifts,  who 
seek  the  very  cunning  of  her  deft  handicraft,  who — not  satisfied  with 
the  fact  that  she  rolls  up  her  bounty  from  seed-time  until  harvest — 
ask  how  her  work  is  done ;  how  the  seed  sprouts,  the  leaf  shoots,  the 
blossom  unfolds,  the  fruit  ripens  ;  how  renewed  life  and  vigor  spring 
from  death  and  decay ;  how  fields  are  exhausted,  and  how  made 
fertile  ;  how  crops  are  increased,  and  kine  are  grown  ;  how  from  only 


^tl^        V-^  c^^ 


4  PREFACE. 

air  and  earth  and  water  such  a  marvel  as  man  is  made  to  live  and 
move. 

I  trust  that  my  experience  as  a  farmer  has  assisted  and  guided 
my  effort  to  separate  the  chaff  from  the  wheat,  or  at  least  to 
select  from  the  teachings  of  others  (whether  in  the  field  or  in  the 
study)  the  information  that  the  farmer,  as  a  farmer,  will  be  most 
benefited  by  gaining.  I  have  endeavored  to  forego  all  theorizing, 
and  to  state  the  leading  facts  of  the  art  and  of  the  science  of  farming 
as  plainly  and  clearly  as  I  could,  so  that  any  man  who  can  read  at 
all,  and  who  has  ordinary  intelligence,  may  find  my  statements  as 
free  as  possible  from  "hard  words,"  and  that  he  may  feel,  as  he 
goes  along,  that  it  is  a  brother  farmer  who  is  talking  to  him,  and 
that  what  he  is  saying  both  his  reason  and  his  experience  lead  him 
to  believe  worth  the  telling. 

It  is  now  too  late  in  the  day  for  a  sensible  man  to  look  with 
anything  but  profound  respect  on  the  invaluable  aid  rendered  to 
agriculture  by  the  discoveries  of  science  and  by  the  practical  ap- 
plication of  these  discoveries;  and  if  any  farmer  feels  the  old  carp- 
ing spirit  rising  within  him,  he  will,  if  he  be  wise,  look  for  a  moment 
at  the  other  side  of  the  question,  and  consider  in  what  important 
particulars  his  own  life  has  been  improved  by  that  which  he  denounces 
as  book-farming, — to  which  he  owes  the  iron  plow,  the  mowing  ma- 
chine, and  probably  the  house  over  his  head. 

This  book  is  intended  especially  for  the  use  of  those  practical,  work- 
ing farmers  who  are  willing  to  believe  that,  while  they  have  learned 
much  from  their  own  experience,  it  is  not  impossible  that  other 
farmers  (and  men  in  other  vocations  as  well)  may  have  learned  some- 
thing too — something  that  it  may  benefit  them  to  learn  also ;  and 
who  are  liberal  enough  to  see  that  the  truth  and  value  of  a  fact  is 
not  destroyed  by  its  being  printed. 

As  will  be  seen  by  reference  to  the  Table  of  Contents,  a  wide  range 
of  subjects  is  discussed  :  in  fact,  it  has  been  attempted  to  write  just  such 
a  book  as  a  young  man  leaving  another  occupation  and  turning  his 
thoughts  to  farming  would  be  glad  to  take  for  his  guide.     There  is 


PREFACE.  5 

not  an  important  statement  in  these  pages  that  I  do  not  believe  to 
be  reliable,  nor  a  theory  advanced  that  my  own  experience  has  not 
taught  me  to  approve. 

Calling  especial  attention  to  the  third  and  eighth  chapters  of  the 
book, — "The  Key-Note  of  Practical  Farming,"  and  "Manures," — 
the  only  ones  in  which  the  chemistry  of  farming  is  much  noticed, — 
it  may  be  said  that  they  are  the  result  of  years  of  study  §.nd  specula- 
lion,  kneaded  into  shape  by  other  years  of  experience. 

It  is  sad  to  look  back  to  the  days  when  "Agriculture  "  was  a  rosy 
future  with  me ;  when  my  work  was  done  with  the  regularity  and 
precision  of  clock-work  by  cheap  and  respectable  farm  hands ;  when 
my  crops  were  all  large  and  my  cattle  were  all  fat ;  when  an  analysis  of 
my  soil,  and  a  chemical  ledger-account  with  each  field,  kept  fertility 
at  the  top  mark ;  and  when  the  balance-sheet  at  the  end  of  the  year 
was  always  adding  to  my  fortune, — and  then  to  bring  my  sobered 
gaze  down  over  the  hillside  of  hard  realities  that  ended  in  the  plain 
of  simple  "Farming,"  of  humdrum  hard  work,  dear  labor,  scant 
manure,  small  crops,  bad  markets,  sick  animals,  and — the  least  in 
the  world — a  sick  heart;  with  "soil  analysis"  an  ignis  fatuiis,  and 
nothing  but  patience  and  toil  and  skill  and  experience  and  hard 
study  to  take  its  place. 

I  make  no  complaint  of  the  disappointment,  for  even  the  harder 
experiences  of  life  are  not  without  their  advantages, — when  they  are 
past, — but  the  hope  of  turning  the  steps  of  other  young  farmers  into 
pleasanter  paths  was  not  the  least  motive  for  the  writing  of  this 
book. 

GEO.  E.  WARING,  Jr. 

Ogden  Farm,  Newport,  R.  I.,  1877. 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


FAGB 

1.  Stone  Wall,  Cross  Section  of.     Fig.  i 45 

2.  "  "  Fig.  2.. 45 

3.  Farm    Gate.     Fig.  3 47 

4.  Gate  Fastening.     Fig.  4 48 

5-  "  F'g- 5 49 

6.  Outline  of  Farm- Yard. and  Buildings  at  Ogden  Farm 53 

7.  Sectional  View  of  Barn  "  "     55 

8.  Perspective  "  "  "     56 

9.  Arrangement  of  Cattle  Floor  "  "     57 

10.  "  Basement  Floor  "  "     58 

11.  Cross  Section  of  Barn  Plan  "  "     60 

12.  Arrangement  of  Root  and  Manure  Cellar    "  "     62 

13.  Perspective  View  of  Medium-sized  Barn.     Fig.  13 65 

14.  Principal  Floor  "  Fig.  14 66 

15.  Basement  Floor  "  Fig.  17 68 

16.  View  of  Barn  Ventilator.     Fig.  15 66 

17.  "  •'  Fig.  16 66 

18.  Perspective  Elevation  of  Barn  and  Sheds.     Fig.  18 69 

19.  Ground  Plan  of  the  Same.     Fig.  19 70 

20.  Second  Floor  "  Fig.  20 71 

21.  Section  of  the  Main  Barn.     Fig.  21 72 

22.  Section  of  Wing.     Fig.  22 73 

23.  Farm  Roads.     Fig.  23 79 

24.  "  Fig.  24 80 

25.  "  Fig- 25 So 

26.  "  Fig.  26 81 

27.  Drains,  Line  of  Saturation  between.     Fig.  27 92 

28.  "        Outlets  of,  secured  by  Masonry,  etc.     Fig.  28 97 

29.  Drainage  Map  of  a  Ten-Acre  Field.    Fig.  29 99 

30.  Defective  Grade  Illustrated.     Fig.  30 loi 

31.  Bracing  the  Sides  in  Soft  Fands.     Fig.  31 103 

32.  Narrow  Ditching  Spade.     Fig.  32..; 103 

33.  Measuring  Staff.     Fig.  33 103 

34.  Boning  Rod.     P"ig.  34 104 

35.  Finishing  Scoop.     Fig.  35 104 

36.  Position  of  Workman  and  Use  of  Scoop.    Fig.  36 105 

1 


8  LIST   OF   ILLUSTRATIONS. 

PACS 

37.  Sighting  by  the  Boning  Rods.     Fig.  37 105 

38.  Pipe  Tile  and  Collar.     Fig.  38 ...  106 

39.  Pick  for  Dressing  Tile,  etc.     Fig.  39 107 

40.  Lateral  Drain.     Fig.  40 108 

41.  Sectional  View  of  Joint.     Fig.  41 loS 

42.  Silt-B.\sin  of  Six-Inch  Tile.     Fig.  42 109 

43.  Square  Brick  Silt-Basin.     Fig.  43 109 

44.  Silt-Basin,  built  to  the  Surface.     Fig.  44 no 

45.  Silt-Basin  of  Vitrified  Pipe.     Fig.  45 in 

46.  Mall  for  Ramming.     Fig.  46 in 

47.  Boynton's  Fire-clay  Tile.     Fig.  47 nS 

48.  "  "  "        Fig.  48 118 

49-  "  "  "         Fig.  49 118 

50.  "  "  "         Fig.  50 119 

51-  "  "  "         Fig.  51 119 

52.  "  "  "         Fig.  52 119 

53-  "  "  "        Fig.  53 119 

54.  Tile-Draining  Implements.    Fig.  54 121 

55.  Opening  the  Ditch  and  Laying  the  Tile.     Fig.  55 122 

56.  Drainage  BY  means  OF  Plank.     Fig.  56 126 

57.  Laying  out  a  Field  for  Plowing.     Fig.  57 138 

58.  Subsoil  Plow.     Fig.  58 141 

59-        "  "        Fig.  59 141 

60.  Whiffletree  and  Evener  for  Three  Horses.    Fig.  60 144 

61.  Field  Roller.     Fig.  61 146 

62.  Shares  P.\tent  Colter.     Fig.  62 149 

63.  Horse  Hoe.     Fig.  63 151 

64.  Holbrook's  Horse  Hoe.     Fig.  64 152 

65.  The  Muller.     Fig.  65 152 

66.  Corn  Crib,  rat  and  mouse  proof.     Fig.  66 249 

67.  "  "  "  Fig.  67 250 

68.  Horses 
69. 
70. 

71- 
72. 


Hoofs  and  Feet  Illustrated.  Fig.  68 407 

"  "  Fig.  69 407 

"  "  Fig.  70 408 

"  "  Fig.  71 411 

«•  «*  Fig.  72 411 


t^ 


Book  of  the  Farm. 


CHAPTER   I. 

BUYING    A    FARM, — OR   LEASING. 

The  very  large  class  of  men  in  America  who  are  either  leaving 
other  pursuits  to  establish  themselves  in  the  country,  or  who, 
having  been  brought  up  on  their  fathers'  farms,  are  about  starting 
for  themselves,  find  the  question  of  buying  a  f^m  to  be,  for  the 
time,  the  all-absorbing  question  of  their  lives  ;  and  it  is  very  natu- 
ral that  it  should  be  so,  for  the  business  is,  emphatically,  one  of  a 
lifetime. 

Being,  unfortunately,  the  occupier  of  leased  land,  which  has 
so  much  of  another  man's  affection  and  interest  invested  in 
it,  that  its  purchase  is  impossible,  I  can  rpeak  with  very  cordial 
earnestness  on  this  point  ;  and  I  can  all  the  more  strongly  urge 
absolute  ownership,  as  of  all  things  almost  the  most  desirable,  be- 
cause I  daily  feel  the  uncertainty  and  unsatisfactoriness  of  a  lease- 
hold tenure. 

So  much  of  the  man  himself,  so  much  of  the  daily  sweat  of  his 
face,  so  much  of  his  hope,  and  of  his  anxiety,  goes  to  the  ground 
that  he  tills  ;  so  many  of  the  assoqiations  of  his  home,  with  its  joys 
and  sorrows,  are  entwined  around  every  tree  and  shrub  in  his  door- 
yard,  that  I  can  conceive  for' him  no  more  dismal  thought  in  life 
than  that,  some  day,  he  must  pull  himself  up  by  the  roots,  and, 
further  on  in  his  years,  must  take  a  fresh  start,  with  all  his  inter- 
est to  cultivate  anew.  Apart  from  any  question  of  economy  or 
of  interest,  I  would  strongly  urge  every  man,  who  finds  it  possible 
for  him  to  do  so,  and  who  means  to  end  his  days  on  a  farm,  to 
buy  his  land.  Let  the  farm  be  smaller  than  he  could  hire,  and 
less  convenient ;  let  him  go  in  debt  for  it  if  he  must,  but  I  deem 


10  II  ANDY- BOOK    OF    HUSBAXDRY. 

him  to  be  a  happier  man  who  oivns  a  small  place,  even  with  a 
mortjra<ie  for  his  shadow,  than  is  he  who,  with  better  facilities  tor 
his  dailv  occupations,  and  better  conveniences  for  his  dailv  hfe,  has 
hanging  before  his  eves  the  fact  that  some  dav,  when  he  is  older 
and  less  able  to  commence  farming  again,  he  must  resign  his  im- 
provements to  his  landlord,  turn  the  key  on  his  home,  and  pitch 
his  tents  in  strange  fields. 

The  question  of  economy,  however,  cannot  be  set  aside. 
There  are,  I  know,  manv  farmers  whose  aim  in  life  seems  to  be 
to  see  how  much  money  they  can  screw  out  of  the  land  to  invest 
on  bond  and  mortgage,  and  the  more  often  they  can  move  and 
apply  their  leeches  to  fresh  cheeks,  the  more  tuUy  they  will  gratify 
their  lowest  ambition.  Thev  save  at  the  spigot  of  improvement, 
and  are  unconscious  of  the  open  bung  of  exhaustion;  in  their 
wav  thev  are  happy.  But  every  man  who  means  to  take  a  broader 
view  of  farming,  and  recognizes  the  fact  that  the  most  substantial 
part  of  the  returns  of  his  labor,  and  of  his  outlay,  consists  in 
better  buildings,  better  soil,  and  better  stock,  will  see  a  sufficient 
reason  for  wishing  to  become  the  owner  of  the  fee  of  (lis  farm. 
In  the  other  transactions  of  life,  where  the  principle  holds  good 
that  any  thing  is  worth  what  it  will  fetch  in  the  market,  business 
men  invest  money  with  a  view  to  the  chances  of  its  return  at  any 
time  when  they  choose  to  sell.  In  farming,  this  principle  does 
not  hold  good — at  least  not  with  regard  to  the  farm  itself. 

It  is  better  that  the  question  of  selling  be  not  at  all  considered, 
for  a  valuable  farm  is  always  a  very  difficult  thing  to  sell,  and  very 
rarely  brings  so  much  as  it  is  worth.  There  are  persons  who 
speculate  in  farms,  who  buy  worn-out  land  at  a  low  price,  and, 
after  improving  it,  sell  it  at  a  high  price.  They  often  make  money 
by  the  operation,  and  they  generally  do  good.  They  are  a  useful 
class  of  enterprising  men,  but  they  are  not  the  kind  of  men  that  I 
have  in  my  mind  now — men  who  intend  to  "follow"  farming  as  a 
permanent  occupation,  who  have  made  up  their  minds  that  it  is  the 
thing  to  do,  and  who  regard  it  not  so  much  an  enterprise  as  a  living. 
To  such,  I  say,  buy  your  farm  judiciously,  and,  of  course,  as 
cheaply  as  you  can.    Make  up  your  mind  whether  it  will  suit  you, 


BUYING    A    FARM,  — OR    LEASING.  H 

before  you  buy,  and,  having  bought  it,  don't  entertain  the  idea  of 
selling  it,  nor  consider  the  money  you  invest  in  improvements  in 
the  light  of  the  selling  value  they  will  add  to  the  farm,  so  much 
as  with  reference  to  the  annual  return  they  will  bring  in  conve- 
nience, economy,  or  fertility.  In  short,  consider  your  farm  as  a  part 
of  yourself,  and  let  it  "grow  with  your  growth,  and  strengthen 
with  your  strength;"  —  you  will  find  your  yearly  advantage  in  so 
doing. 

Under  all  circumstances,  make  the  purchase  of  a  farm  a  matter 
of  the  most  careful  study.  Probably  it  is  the  only  farm  that  you 
will  ever  buy,  and  it  will  have  very  much  to  do  with  your  pros- 
perity and  your  happiness  throughout  your  whole  life.  If  you  have 
been  bred  a  farmer  you  will  be  able  to  decide  what  you  want,  and 
can  form  an  opinion  that  will  be  more  satisfactory  (to  yourself  at 
least)  than  any  that  you  will  get  from  books  or  from  men. 

If  you  have  passed  your  previous  life  in  another  occupation, 
and  now  mean  to  make  your  living  by  farming,  the  best  advice 
that  any  one  could  give  you  would  be  to  go  and  pass  a  whole  year 
with  the  best  farmer  you  know.  Become  a  regular  "farm  hand," 
with  an  understanding  that  you  are  to  be  allowed  to  learn  to  do 
all  kinds  of  farm  work.  "Work  away  for  dear  life  at  his  farm, 
*'  and  make  him  tell  you  all  he  knows.  Fancy  it  is  your  money  in- 
"  stead  of  his  that  buys  every  ton  of  manure  he  expends."^'"  After 
such  an  experience,  and  with  the  aid  of  what  you  can  learn  from 
books,  you  will  probably  be  able  to  judge  for  yourself,  better  than 
any  one  else  can  judge  for  you,  what  sort  of  farm  you  want. 

It  is  a  good  plan,  (for  a  man  who  has  an  opinion  of  his  own,)  to 
ask  the  advice  or  opinion  of  others  pretty  freely,  not  that  such 
opinions  are  generally  worth  much,  but  they  are  often  suggestive 
of  new  points  to  be  considered. 

I  do  not  propose  to  say  much  in  the  way  of  advice  on  the 
subject  of  farm  buying.  The  variety  of  tastes  to  be  suited,  and 
the  variety  of  wants  to  be  supplied,  are  about  as  numerous  as  the 
men  themselves  who  are  seeking  farms,  and,  while  taste  may  be 
in  a   great  measure  educated  and   modified,  and   while  the  real 

*  Talpa. 


13  HANDY -BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

requirements  of  all  systems  of  farming  might  be  enumerated  and 
discussed,  it  would  be  far  beyond  the  scope  of  this  book  to  attempt 
cither.  There  are,  however,  a  few  general  principles  whose  appli- 
cation is  so  universal  that  they  should  always  be  borne  in  niinJ, 
but  beyond  these  I  do  not  deem  it  practicable  to  go. 

To  those  who  want  to  buy  for  a  home  rather  than  for  2.  fartn^ — 
who  want  an  ornamental  farm,  or  a  sort  of  agricultural  countiy- 
seat, — these  directions  can  be  of  use  only  in  so  far  as  they  apply 
to  the  strictly  agricultural  aspects  of  their  case.  The  very  im- 
portant considerations  of  beauty,  society,  and  the  conveniences  <  ! 
luxurious  living  must  be  determined  by  the  light  of  other  con- 
siderations than  those  with  which  simple  farming  has  to  do. 

At  the  same  time,  every  farm  must  be  the  home  of  the  farmer's 
family,  and  must,  (or  should,)  comprise  the  influences  which  are 
to  ha\  e  the  most  weight  in  the  development  of  his  Own  and  his 
wife's  characters,  and  in  moulding  the  habits,  the  tastes,  and  the 
constitutions  of  his  children. 

As  a  man  has  but  one  life  to  live,  he  should  be  very  careful  that 
he  so  lives  as  to  get  from  it  the  greatest  possible  amount  of  health, 
comfort,  cultivation,  and  ability  for  usefulness  for  himself  and  for 
his  family.  This  requires  a  healthy  location,  a  good  house,  good 
facilities  for  education,  good  neighborhood,  and  good  land.  To 
get  all  of  these  is  the  lot  of  but  few  men.  Generally,  we  must  be 
content  with  only  a  part  of  them.  Inasmuch  as, — after  health, — 
money  is  not  the  greatest  good,  but  the  means  for  attaining  the 
greatest  good,  the  quality  of  the  soil  is  of  more  importance  than 
any  other  thing  except  healthfulness  of  situation.  A  hundred 
bushels  of  corn  or  forty  bushels  of  wheat  to  the  acre,  will  not 
compensate  a  man  for  a  houseful  of  fever  and  ague,  but  if  they 
can  be  had  without  the  disease,  they  will  lead  the  way  to  almost 
every  thing  else  that  is  needed. 

The  first  thing  to  be  decided  is,  whether  to  remain  in  well- 
settled  parts  of  the  country,  or  to  emigrate  to  virgin  land.  In  the 
latter  case,  the  question  should  be,  in  how  far  will  large  crops 
and  lighter  work  compensate  for  the  want  of  good  schools,  good 
society,  and  good  home-markets.      In  the  former,  in  how  far  wi!l 


BUYING    A    FARM,  — OR     LEASING.  13 

the  social,  educational,  and  commercial  advantages  make  up  for 
the  poorer  quality  of  the  soil.  I  assume  that  in  either  case  the 
consideration  of  health  is  the  most  important  of  all. 

The  far  West,  with  its  newer  and  more  fertile  land,  is  very 
tempting  to  one  class  of  men,  and  the  older-settled  parts  of  the 
country,  with  their  older  civilization  and  their  more  dense  popula- 
tion, have  equal  charms  for  another  class.  There  is  much  to  be  said 
in  favor  of  both  ;  but  as  the  broader  culture,  and  more  careless 
feeding  which  is  practiced  on  the  larger  farms  of  new  countries, 
requires  less  exact  knowledge  and  less  close  economy  than  is  in- 
dispensable on  higher-priced  land,  the  objects  of  my  book  will 
be  best  attained  if  I  confine  my  attention  to  the  requirements  of 
the  more  thorough  system  of  agriculture  that  small  farms  make 
necessary.  These  are  based  on  universal  principles,  and  the  ex- 
tent to  which  they  may  be,  or  must  be,  modified,  as  land  grows 
cheaper,  farms  larger,  labor  dearer,  and  produce  less  valuable, 
must  be  decided  by  every  man  for  himself. 

It  is  possible  to  keep  fifty  cows  on  a  farm  of  fifty  acres. 
Whether  it  will  pay  to  do  so  must  be  decided  by  the  prices  of 
milk  and  of  labor.  It  would  pay  to  do  it  near  New  York  City. 
It  certainly  would  not  pay  in  Western  Kansas.  Still,  a  farmer  in 
Kansas  could  only  be  benefited  by  knowing  how  it  may  be  profitably 
done  by  the  farmer  in  New  York. 

While  the  settlement  of  wild  lands  is  often  a  good  thing  for  the 
settler,  and  always  a  good  thing  for  the  country,  I  think  that  it  is 
often  undertaken  under  a  very  mistaken  notion  that  it  offers  the 
only  chance  for  a  man  of  small  capital. 

Let  us  suppose  a  young  man,  just  married,  to  have  a  cash 
capital  of  $i,ooo,  (and  the  same  principles  will  hold  good  in  the 
case  of  a  smaller  or  a  much  larger  amount,)  with  which  he  pur- 
poses to  commence  farming.  He  starts  life  with  his  own  head 
and  hands,  the  head  and  hands  of  his  wife,  and  his  $i,ooo  in 
money.  His  object  is  to  so  use  these  advantages  as  to  get  out  of 
his  life  the  greatest  amount  of  good.  The  world  lies  before  him 
for  a  choice.  He  can  buy — with  a  mortgage — five  or  ten  acres 
on  the  outskirts  of  a  manufactuiing  town  at  the  East,  or  he  can 


l-i  nAXKY-BOOK    OF    II  USli  AI^' D  K  V. 

have  a  hundred  and  sixty  acres  at  the  West  for  the  taking.  If  he 
is  the  right  sort  of  man,  he  mav  grow  rich,  with  the  same  amount 
of  labor,  during  his  whole  lite-time,  on  either  place.  Fifty  years 
hence  he  would  haye,  at  the  West,  a  capital  farm,  well  fenced, 
well  watered,  with  good  out-buildings,  and  with  a  good  hous". 
Probably,  he  would  also  haye  his  share  of  political  honor  and  of 
social  distinction.  At  the  East  he  would  have  glass-houses,  hot- 
beds, rich  land  for  vegetables,  a  house  "  with  all  the  modern  con- 
veniences," and  the  most  agreeable  kind  of  work  for  the  evening 
of  his  life.  He  would  be  less  likely  to  achieve  personal  distinc- 
tion, but,  on  the  other  hand,  his  wife  would  have,  at  least  at  the 
commencement,  less  drudgery,  and  his  children  would  have  better 
advantages  for  education  near  home. 

These  arc  the  two  extremes  which  are  open  to  him,  and  his 
opportunities  cover  the  whole  ground  between.  It  is  for  each 
man  to  weigh  well  the  arguments  on  both  sides  of  the  case,  and 
decide  for  himself, — what  fio  book  can  tell  him, — which  path 
promises  the  most  of  what  he  considers  the  most  desirable. 

In  choosing  a  farm  in  the  far  West,  the  considerations  which 
should  influence  one  are  rather  political  and  commercial  than 
agricultural.  There  is  so  much  perfectly  good  land  to  be  had, 
that  it  is  much  more  difficult  to  decide  upon  the  most  desirable 
location,  than  it  is  to  find  good  land  in  the  chosen  situation. 

Farther  east,  however,  good  situations  are  plenty,  while  good 
land  is  not  always  to  be  found,  and  the  more  nearly  we  approach  the 
Atlantic  coast,  the  less  easily  can  we  suit  ourselves  in  this  respect. 

I  can  say  little  about  the  South  that  ought  to  have  weight  in 
deciding  a  quiet  farmer  to  go  there.  The  state  of  society  is  so 
unsettled  and  the  prospect  of  the  immediate  fJrtu"iffe  is  so  uncer- 
tain, while  so  many  Northern  men  who  went  there  under  the 
most  favorable  circumstances,  and  with  the  most  flattering  pros- 
pects at  the  close  of  the  war,  have  come  home  v/iser  and  sadder 
than  when  they  went,  that  it  seems  to  me  that  a  prudent  person 
should  leave  the  Southern  lands,  with  their  many  great  advan- 
tages, for  th?  settlers  of  some  future  day. 

Supposing  the  region  for  the  new  home  to  be  decided   on,  and 


BUY  IX  a    A    FARM,— OR    LEASING  15 

that  it  be  near  one  of  the  lai;ger  towns  at  the  East,  what  are 
the  considerations  which  should  decide  us  in  the  selection  of  the 
farm  ? 

First. — Avoid  a  malarious  district.  There  is  no  curse  like  fever 
and  ague, —  which  will  bring  more  misery  to  a  family  than  any 
amount  of  prosperity  can  overcome,  and  of  which  there  is  far  too 
'much  both  at  the  East  and  at  the  West. 

Second. — Choose  a  small  farm, — small,  that  is,  in  proportion  to 
your  capital.  I  think  no  man  is  wise  who  at  the  East  goes  in 
debt  for  more  than  fifty  acres.  With  plenty  of  capital,  a  farmer 
of  good  executive  ability  can  hardly  have  too  much  land.  Any 
one  who  has  to  work  himself  out  of  debt,  mainly  by  the  labor  of 
his  own  hands  will  find  fifty  acres  better  than  more.  His  chances 
will  be  better  with  ten  acres  than  with  a  hundred.  So  far  as  one 
man's  work  is  concerned,  especially  with  small  means  for  the 
purchase  of  stock,  implements,  and  manure,  the  more  it  is  con- 
centrated, the  better  it  will  tell  in  the  end,  and  fifty  acres  brought 
to  the  highest  state  of  cultivation  of  which  the  land  is  susceptible, 
will  produce  more  at  much  less  cost  than  will  a  hundred  acres 
only  half  so  well  cultivated. 

Third. — Buy  a  farm  that  is  very  much  run  down  and  out  of 
repair,  rather  than  a  good  farm  with  good  improvements  which 
are  not  exactly  what  you  will  require,  unless  you  can  get  the  im- 
provements for  much  less  than  it  would  cost  you  to  replace  them. 
Better  pay  fifty  dollars  an  acre  for  a  place  that  fifty  dollars  more 
will  make  exactly  right,  than  a  hundred  dollars  for  a  place  that 
never  will  be  exactly  right. 

Fourth. — Remember  that  to  clear  up  swamps,  build  stone  walls, 
and  dig  out  rocks  and  stumps  costs  much  labor,  and  delays  legit- 
imate farm  operations.  Farmers  are  not  apt  to  reckon  these 
things  at  their  full  cost,  because  they  do  not  usually  pay  out 
money  to  have  them  done — forgetting  that  their  own  labor,  thus 
spent,  might  be  more  advantageously  applied  to  better  land.  The 
tile  drainage  of  wet  clays  may  be  undertaken  with  more  con- 
fidence, because  such  soils  when  thoroughly  drained  are  usually 
the   most    profitable    of  all   for   cultivation.      Still,   in    purchasing 


1(3  HAXDY-BOOK    OF    UUSBAXDRY. 

land  of  this  sort  we  should  calculate  to  pay  out  from  thirty  to 
sixty  dollars  an  acre  for  draining  tiles  and  labor, — an  expenditure 
which  not  unfrequently  comes  back  in  two  or  three  years,  from 
the  hicreased  production  ;  while  the  improvement  is  permanent, 
and  often  increases  yearly  for  a  long  time  ;  yet  which  does  con- 
sume capital. 

Fifth. — Be  sure  that  the  place  is  adapted  to  the  sort  of  farm- 
ing you  mean  to  follow.  Do  not  hope  to  raise  the  best  fruit  on 
moist,  cold  land,  exposed  to  the  highest  winds,  nor  to  raise  the 
best  grass  on  a  ground  that  is  too  high  and  dry.  If  your  soil 
will  require  heavy  manuring,  and  your  system  of  farming  will  not 
produce  much  manure,  you  should  be  near  enough  to  a  town  to 
haul  out  stable   manure  or  other  fertilizers  without  too  great  cost. 

Sixth. — I  don't  know  but  that  this  should  follow  next  after  the 
question  of  health.  Bear  in  mind  the  fact  that  the  farm  is  to  be 
your  home.  You  are  a  man  and  your  work  is  out  of  doors.  If 
you  have  comfortable  lodging,  and  sufficient  shelter,  you  may  get 
on  without  being  made  unhappy  by  a  dismal  house.  But  your 
wife  and  your  children  have  equal  claims  to  consideration,  and 
you  make  a  grave  mistake  if  you  compel  them  to  live  in  an 
uncomfortable  or  cheerless  house,  with  no  pleasant  surroundings, 
and  no  hope  of  having  them. 

Unhappily  a  very  large  majority  of  farmers  do  make  this  mis- 
take, and  they  are  rewarded  for  it  by  the  promptness  with  which 
their  children  run  from  the  old  roof-tree  as  soon  as  their  ao^e  and 
circumstances  will  allow  it,  not  always,  it  is  true,  to  better  their 
condition,  but  always  in  the  hope  of  a  more  agreeable  life.  It 
will  be  better  for  agriculture  in  America,  and,  therefore,  better 
for  America  and  for  the  world,  when  farmers'  children  can  find 
no  pleasanter  place  than  the  home  where  they  were  born  and 
when  they  realize  the  fact,  (for  it  is  a  fact,)  that  the  life  of  a 
farmer  may  be  as  comfortable  and  as  elegant  as  that  of  a  mer- 
chant or  a  manufacturer.  Buy  a  good  farm, — or  one  that  you 
can  afford  to  make  good,  in  a  good  situation, — with  schools, 
churches,  and  society  for  your  family,  and  you  will  have  a  good 
prospect  of  a  happy  life. 


BUYING    A    FARM,— OR    LKASING.  17 

Or,  if  you  decide  to  move  to  the  West,  get  as  many  of  these 
advantages  as  you  can,  and  trust  for  the  rest  to  the  fact  that 
schools,  society,  and  markets  are  working  their  way  intothe  newer 
States  with  great  rapidity.  By  the  time  that  your  children  are 
grown  up,  it  is  probable  that  your  new  home  will  be  much  better 
surrounded  by  all  of  these  than  would  now  seem  possible. 

LEASING. 

There  has  recently  been  published  in  London,  under  the 
title  ot  "  Practice  with  Science,"  a  series  of  essays  on  various 
agricultural  topics.  Eighty  of  its  four  hundred  pages  are  devoted 
to  the  question  of  leases.  There,  the  farmer  who  owns  his  land  is 
an  exception.  Here,  fortunately,  the  leaseholder  is  an  exception, 
and  an  exception  so  rare  that  we  need  not  devote  much  time  to  the 
discussion  of  his  position, — one  which  is  generally  temporary, 
inasmuch  as  he  almost  always  looks  forward  to  the  time  when 
he  will  be  able  to  buy  a  farm  of  his  own. 

The  main  thing  to  be  said  about  leases  is,  that  it  is  for  the 
mutual  benefit  of  both  landlord  and  tenant  that  they  be  made  as 
long  as  possible,  in  order  that  the  tenant  may  afford  to  make  such 
improvements,  and  to  pursue  such  a  course  of  cultivation  as  his 
advantage  and  the  good  of  the  farm  may  require  ;  that  he  be 
allowed  every  possible  facility  for  good  farming,  and  that  he  be 
restrained  from  any  course  of  cultivation  or  any  sale  of  crops  that 
will  lessen  the  value  of  the  land  for  future  use. 

A  lease  for  a  single  year  at  a  time,  and  the  privilege  of  selling 
hay  without  returning  manure,  will  usually  end  in  the  impoverish- 
ment of  the  farmer,  and  of  the  farm  too. 


CHAPTER      II 


THE    BEGINNING    OF    OPERATIONS. 


The  farm  is  bought,  chcaplv  because  it  is  in  a  badly  run-down 
condition,  but  it  is  only  the  middle  ot"  September,  and  there  is 
time  enoutjh  vet  to  do  a  good  deal  in  the  way  of  improvement 
before  winter  sets  in. 

The  house  is  pretty  good, — a  little  painting  and  lime-washing 
and  paper-hanging,  will  make  it  cosv  enough  for  a  commencement, 
and  it  can  be  patched  up  so  that  it  will  be  a  snug  house,  until 
there  is  money  to  make  it  better.  There  is  too  much  demand  for 
money  on  the  farm  for  much  to  be  spent  for  ornament  now. 

On  the  whole,  it  is  not  a  bad  purchase  :  seventy-five  acres  of 
land, — fifty  cleared  and  twenty-five  in  wood, — two  miles  from  a 
busy  town  which  gets  two-thirds  of  its  food  from  the  West,  and 
most  of  its  butter  from  the  citv  markets,  and  which  affords  a  good 
supply  of  stable  manure.  Our  end  of  the  town  stretches  out  in 
a  sort  of  \  illage  which  has  a  nice-looking  school-house,  hardly 
more  than  a  mile  from  us.  The  neighborhood  immediately  about 
is  good,  and  the  place  looks  home-like,  if  the  house  is  an  old  one. 
On  this  score,  our  young  man  is  quite  satisfied,  but  he  has  plenty 
of  hard  work  ahead,  a  heavy  mortgage  on  his  farm,  and  barely 
capital  enough  to  work  his  way  to  prosperity.  It  will  take  a 
stout  heart,  a  strong  arm,  and  a  clear  head  to  bring  him 
through,  but  it  can  be  done,  and  I  have  placed  him  in  this 
position  because  his  is  the  lot  of  most  men  who  marry  young  and 
start  in  life  as  farmers. 

His  course  must  be  marked  by  the  most  patient  industry,  but 
the   industry  must   not  be  all  of  the  body.      Farmers  who  have 


THE    COMMENCEMENT    OF    OPERATIONS.  19 

gone  before  him — for  thousands  of  years — have  learned  a  good  deal, 
and  what  they  have  learned  has  been  written  and  printed.  Other 
farmers  are  trying  experiments,  the  results  of  which  are  as  valuable 
for  him  as  for  them.  Men  in  other  walks  of  life  have  applied  their 
knowledge  to  finding  out  how  plants  grow  and  what  influence  is 
exerted  on  them  by  soils  and  manures.  Their  discoveries  have 
been  published,  and  many  of  them  have  been  approved  by  practice 
on  farms.  Altogether,  this  constitutes  more  knowledge  about 
the  operations  of  the  farm  than  he  could  gain  by  experience  if  he 
lived  ten  lives,  and  spent  every  day  of  all  of  them  in  the  most 
ener2;etic  work  on  his  farm  ; — more  than  he  could  "  think  out 
for  himself"  if  he  were  to  keep  up  a  steady  thinking  until 
Doomsday.  And  it  is,  very  much  of  it,  knowledge  which  he, 
as  a  farmer,  needs  to  have,  just  as  much  as  a  doctor  needs  to 
know  what  others  have  learned  of  medicine. 

The  best  use  he  can  make  of  a  portion  of  his  money  is  to  spend 
it  for  agricultural  books  and  papers,  and  the  best  use  he  can  make 
of  his  leisure  time  is  to  spend  a  fair  share  of  it  in  reading  them. 
Let  his  neighbors  call  him  "  book  farmer,"  if  they  will,  and  let 
them  decry  "  theories  ;"  he  will  work  none  the  less  faithfully  for 
any  thing  he  learns  out  of  agricultural  books,  and  in  the  end 
he  will  find  that  a  ton  of  hay  will  cost  him  no  more  because  he 
knows  something  of  the  principles  of  hav-making,  and  of  the  laws 
which  operate  in  the  growth  of  grass.  The  condition  of  his  farm, 
ten  years  hence,  will  be  a  sufficient  answer  to  those  who  have 
ridiculed  his  habit  of  reading  about  farming. 

Still,  he  should  read  with  great  caution  and  with  judgment. 
There  is  a  great  deal  in  agricultural  books,  and  still  more  in  agri- 
cultural papers,  which  is  crude  and  fanciful,  and  which  cannot 
be  successfully  applied  in  practice.  While  he  should  read  faith- 
fully, he  should  make  use  of  what  he  reads  only  with  great  care, 
and  avoid  trying,  at  least  on  a  large  scale,  any  thing  which  is  not 
actually  proven  to  be  suited  to  his  case. 

The  first  of  his  out-of-door  operations  should  be  to  make  a  map 
of  his  cleared  land,  with  the  division  fences,  and  the  location  of 
the  buildings.     This  map  need  not  be  very  accurate — what  is 


20  II  A  X  D  T  -  B  0  0  K    OF    H  U  S  B  A  N  D  R  Y. 

most  necessary  is  to  have  something  that  will  serve  as  a  reminder 
when  he  ii  studying  over  his  future  operations,  in  the  house  in 
bad  weather.  It  will  cost  very  little  to  have  a  surveyor  make  a 
diagram  of  his  boundary  lines  from,  the  description  in  his  deed,  and 
he  can  pace  off  the  starting-points  of  his  division  fences,  so  as  to 
make  a  map  good  enough  for  his  own  use. 

Very  soon  after  taking  possession,  he  should  manage  to  get  in 
five  or  six  acres  of  rye.  This  will  never  come  amiss.  If  the 
pastures  are  backward  in  the  spring,  he  can  cut  enough,  daily,  for 
a  green  bite  for  his  animals,  and  what  he  does  not  need  to  use  in 
this  way  will  be  worth,  in  straw  and  grain,  much  more  than  it 
will  have  cost. 

Other  necessary  work,  in  repairing  buildings  for  temporary  use, 
building  up  fences  where  they  have  fallen  down,  providing  winter 
food  for  his  stock,  and  getting  ready  for  winter  generally,  will 
occupy  his  time  until  cold  weather  actually  sets  in.  Even  if  he 
have  ready  money  for  improvements,  I  would  recommend  him  to 
be  very  careful  about  commencing  them  at  once.  He  needs 
at  least  a  whole  winter  to  make  up  his  mind  what  he  really 
wants,  though,  if  he  has  swamp  land  on  his  place,  he  can  make  no 
mistake  in  hauling  out  muck  to  be  composted  with  the  manure  as 
fast  as  made.  As  soon  as  he  can  decide  which  field  he  will  put 
in  corn  the  next  year,  if  he  intends  to  buy  manure  from  stables 
in  the  town,  he  should  commence  hauling  and  spread  it  directly 
on  the  sod  to  be  plowed  in  in  early  spring.  If  he  is  sure  of  early 
pasture,  he  may  omit  sowing  rye,  and  plow  his  corn  land  as  early 
as  possible,  spreading  the  manure  on  the  furrow.  The  crop  will 
probably  be  better  for  it,  and  he  will,  at  least,  have  that  much 
spring  work  done  beforehand.  This  fall-plowing  should  be  con- 
fined to  land  which  will  not  be  likely  to  wash,  and  if  the  subsoil 
is  an  unfertile  ''  blue-pan,"  great  care  should  be  taken  not  to 
bring  it  to  the  surface.  On  many  soils  it  is  best,  late  in  the  fall, 
to  defer  the  plowing  until  spring, — enriching  the  soil  as  much  as 
possible  by  top-dressing. 

When  the  winter  has  really  set  in,  and  he  has  long  evenings 
and  stormy   days  for  house-work,  he   should  study  his  map  well 


THE    COMMENCEMENT    OF    OPERATIONS.  21 

and  develop  a  plan  for  future  operations.  What  to  do  about 
buildings,  what  fences  to  remove,  so  as  to  enlarge  his  fields, 
what  to  rebuild,  what  land,  if  any,  to  drain,  what  crops  to 
plant,  what  stock  to  keep,  how  to  improve  the  pastures,  which 
meadows  to  break  up,  which  to  top-dress  and  bring  into  better 
mowing  condition  —  these  and  a  hundred  other  questions  will 
present  themselves,  and  they  must  all  be  decided  with  most 
careful  judgment.  Though  he  do  his  best,  he  will  make  many 
mistakes,  and  when,  in  the  spring,  he  comes  to  review  in  the 
field  his  winter's  work  in  the  house,  he  will  see  reasons  for  chano-- 

o 

ing  many  of  his  plans.  But,  for  all  that,  his  plans  will  have  been 
profitable  to  him,  in  many  ways,  and  he  will  be  in  a  better  posi- 
tion to  decide  on  the  best  course  after  having  made  them. 

When  he  really  gets  at  work,  in  March  or  April,  he  will  have 
his  hands  full,  and  his  head  full,  too,  with  the  management  of 
each  day's  operations.  Then,  his  practical  experience  will  come 
into  play,  and,  tempered  by  what  he  has  learned  by  his  winter's 
reading,  must  carry  him  through  planting,  haying,  and  harvest,  as 
best  it  may. 

It  would  be  too  much  a  work  of  mere  imagination  to  describe 
all  the  labors  of  the  season  ;  to  fancy  this  field  to  be  drained  ; 
that  one  to  be  made  smaller  ;  this  larger  ;  a  barn  to  be  built  here  ; 
a  shed  there  ;  and  all  that, — I  prefer  to  leave  these  details  to  the 
young  man's  own  discretion,  and,  (as  I  cannot  write  out  direc- 
tions for  all  farms,)  to  turn  to  the  discussion  of  the  various  prin- 
ciples and  operations  which  all  farmers  need  to  know  about,  so 
that  not  only  he,  but  all  others,  may  have,  so  far  as  I  am  able  to 
give  it  them,  a  convenient  hand-book  of  their  occupation. 


CHAPTER     III. 

THE    KEY-NOTE    OF    GOOD    FARMING. 

The  teachings  of  agricultural  chemistrv  and  of  vegetable  physi- 
ologv  are  very  much  less  positive  now  than  they  were  hfteen  years 
ago,  concerning  many  matters  of  very  great  importance  to  the  farmer. 
The  old  idea  of  the  practical  value  of  soil  analvsis  exploded  long 
ago,  and  it  shook  the  very  foundations  of  "Book  Farming." 

Still,  there  are  many  things  that  are  positively  known — proven 
by  simple  and  unmistakable  evidence — that  are  of  practical  value, 
yes,  of  vital  consequence.  Many  other  things  we  are  led  to 
believe  are  undoubtedly  true,  and  we  know  are  of  great  importance, 
but  their  positive  proof  lies,  thus  far,  among  the  hidden  processes 
of  nature's  workshops,  waiting  the  day  when  a  keener-eyed  science 
than  ours  shall  unfold  them.  Thus  far  we  can  only  draw  infer- 
ences from  them — valuable  inferences,  it  is  true,  but  not  yet 
absolute  rules. 

To  enter  upon  the  discussion  of  these  facts  and  inferences,  so 
as  to  develop  their  full  influence  in  agriculture,  would  compel  me 
to  entirely  change  the  purpose  of  my  work.  I  can  only  touch 
upon  a  icw  fundamental  truths  which  lie  at  the  root  of  the  great 
economies  of  our  art. 

I  desire,  at  the  outset,  to  disclaim  all  sympathy  with  the  popular 
outcry  against  theory^  believing  that  agricultural  writers  have  done 
much  harm  by  catering  to  the  prejudice  on  which  this  outcry  is 
based.  Iheory  is  a  correct  statement  of  the  principles  by  which 
any  efFect  is  produced  -,  it  is  a  recognition  of  unchangeable  laws, 
and  is  as  necessarv  to  the  farmer  who  grows  Indian  corn,  as  it  is 
to  the  mechanic  who  makes  the  mill  by  which  corn  is  ground. 


THE    KEY-XOTE    OF    GOOD    FARMING.  23 

To  guess  at  the  cause  of  any  effect,  and  to  imagine  that  certain 
laws  may  be  made  to  act  in  a  way  in  which  it  is  not  proved  that 
they  can  act,  is  by  no  means  theory, — it  is  a  mere  fancy,  and  it  is 
this  fancy  that  has  been  decried  under  the  name  of  "theory." 
A  knowledge  of  theory  is  necessary  to  real  practice,  and  I  desire, 
so  far  as  my  limits  and  my  ability  will  allow,  to  justify  good  practice 
with  theory,  and  to  prove  theories  by  practice,  stating  the  whole 
case  so  far  as  possible,  in  the  plain  English  of  common  life,  avoid- 
ing, wherever  practicable,  such  purely  technical  terms  as  are  not 
familiar  to  farmers. 

The  first  great  aim  of  all  farming  is  to  raise  the  largest  possible 
crops  at  the  least  possible  cost,  and  good  farming  considers  any 
injury  to  the  soil  as  a  part  of  the  cost.  The  use  that  is  to  be 
made  of  crops  after  they  are  raised,  is  an  important  but  a  secondary 
consideration.  How  to  raise  the  crops  is  the  first  question,  and 
in  answering  it  we  should  know  what  plants  are  made  of,  whence 
their  constituent  parts  come,  and  how  they  are  put  together.  The 
farmer  should  recognize  the  fact  that  he  is  a  manufacturer,  whose 
object  it  is  to  make  roots,  or  stems,  or  leaves,  by  putting  together 
the  raw  materials  in  his  store-house,  in  the  most  complete,  most 
satisfactory,  most  workmanlike  manner.  To  do  this  he  should 
understand  his  machinery  and  his  material,  at  least  so  far  as  the 
present  state  of  agricultural  knowledge  enables  him  to  do  so. 

In  a  certain  sense  the  requirements  of  all  cultivated  plants  are 
the  same.  They  all  need  the  assistance  of  the  soil,  the  air,  the 
light  and  heat  of  the  sun,  and  water  to  attain  their  growth,  and 
they  will  be  more  or  less  perfect  in  their  development  according 
to  the  completeness  with  which  all  of  these  difi^erent  agencies  are 
allowed  to  act. 

I  have  not  the  space  to  give  such  a  complete  statement  of  the 
teachings  of  chemistry  as  applied  to  agriculture  as  is  necessary 
to  a  profitable  understanding  of  the  more  intricate  laws  of  vege- 
table growth,  but  there  are  certain  leading  principles  which  chem- 
istry has  unfolded,  that  should  be  familiar  to  every  farmer,  and 
which,  fortunatelv,  may  be  plainly  stated  and  easily  understood. 

If  a  hundred   pounds  of  grass   is  laid   upon  a   shelf,  in  a  warm 


24  ITANDY-DOOK    Oli"    HUSBANDRY. 

room,  it  wilts  and  shrivels  up,  losing  much  of  its  weight.  This 
results  from  the  dr)  ing  out  of  the  water  with  which  its  pores  are 
filled.  If  it  is  allowed  to  become  rotten,  it  loses  much  more 
of  its  bulk,  its  texture  is  broken  up,  and  it  gives  off  foul  odors.  In 
this  case  it  loses  a  part  of  its  own  substance,  (not  only  the 
water  which  filled  its  pores  and  gave  it  its  natural  form,  but 
a  part  of  the  very  material  by  which  its  pores  are  surrounded,) 
and,  if  kept  under  circumstances  favorable  to  decomposition,  it 
will  finally  be  reduced  to  a  blackened  mass,  almost  a  mould, 
with  no  indication  of  its  original  form,  and  with  not  a  twen- 
tieth part  of  its  original  weight.  If  this  small  residue  is  burned, 
only  a  handful  of  ashes  will  remain  of  the  once  luxuriant  grass. 
The  same  result  would  come  of  a  like  treatment  of  every  plant 
that  grows.  Some  would  be  more  and  some  less  rapidly  reduced 
by  the  original  decay,  while  fire,  which  is  only  a  more  active  decay, 
would  drive  away  water,  fiber,  bark,  leaves,  and  roots,  and  leave 
only  the  ashes  behind. 

Our  grass  is  destroyed, — where  has  it  gone  ?  The  water  has 
*'  dried  up,"  become  vapor,  and  gone  to  help  make  the  rains  and 
the  dew.  The  gum  and  starch,  and  flesh-forming  parts  have 
rotted  away,  and  have  floated  oft"  as  gases  into  the  air  whence 
they  originally  came,  and  where  they  are  again  on  duty,  ready  to 
enter  the  leaves  of  plants,  or,  being  dissolved  by  the  moisture  of 
the  soil,  to  travel  up  their  roots  and  again  take  on  a  useful  form. 
The  woody  matters  that  have  burned  away  have  followed  the 
same  law,  and  will  follow  it  again  and  again  as  long  as  growth 
and  decay  last.  All  that  remains  to  us  is  our  poor  handful  of 
gray  ashes, — this  is  the  only  part  of  our  grass  that  can  be  sup- 
plied by  the  soil  alone,  and  to  the  soil  we  must  give  it  again. 

Let  us  now  examine  the  different  sources  of  plant-food  : — 

THE    SOIL. 

A  fertile  soil  contains  various  proportions  of  clay  and  sand, 
and  mixed  earthy  substances  and  decayed  vegetable  matter  ;  these, 
together,  forming  nearly  its  whole  bulk,  and  acting  in  a  mechanical 
rather  than    in   a   chemical   manner  upon  the  growth    of    plants. 

'     if 


THE    KEY -NOTE    OF   GOOD    FARMING.  25 

That  is,  they  constitute  a  porous  mass  ;  with  a  certain  power  of 
absorbing  moisture  from  the  atmosphere,  from  rains  and  from  the 
**  water  table,"  *  which  Hes  at  a  greater  or  less  depth  below  the 
surface ;  with  a  greater  or  less  ability  to  admit  the  circulation 
of  air  ;  with  a  certain  power  to  absorb  and  retain  heat ;  and  with 
pores  between  its  particles  into  which  roots  may  penetrate.  So 
far  as  these  qualities  are  concerned,  the  most  fertile  soils  are  those 
which  are  loose  in  their  texture,  and  neither  light  enough  to  become 
too  easily  dry,  nor  so  heavy  as  to  be  too  excessively  wet  in  rainy 
seasons.  Such  soils  may  have  a  wide  range  of  composition  with- 
out materially  differing  in  fertility.  All  that  is  required  is  that  they 
contain  enough  clay  to  give  them  a  good  consistency,  and  enough 
marl,  or  vegetable  mould,  or  sand  to  prevent  their  being  too  stiff. 
They  may  contain  very  little  or  very  much  sand,  very  little  or 
very  much  vegetable  matter,  and  very  little  or  very  much  marl. 
Even  the  clay  may  be  present  in  large  or  small  proportion  without 
necessarily  making  the  soil  much  richer  or  poorer. 

These  rhechanical  ingredients  of  soils  may  vary  in  the  follow- 
ing proportions  without  materially  affecting  its  fertility,  pro- 
viding, of  course,  that  they  are  so  apportioned  to  each  other  as 
to  make  a  mass  of  the  proper  consistency. 

Organic  matter  (vegetable  mould) from  8   czs.  to  70  lbs.  in   100  lbs. 

Clay "      5  lbs  "35  "  '■' 

Sand  (silicious) "20    *'  "90  "  " 

Marl  (calcareous  or  limy  sand) "      5     "  "20  "  " 

A  perfectly  fertile  soil,  out  of  which  the  water  has  been 
dried,  may  contain  as  much  as  98  or  even  99  per  cent,  of  matters 
which  never  enter  the  roots  of  ordinarily  cultivated  plants,  and 
which  only  perform  the  mechanical  offices  set  forth  above. 

Intimately  mixed  with  this  mass  of  material,  and,  like  it,  de- 
rived  from    the    decomposition  of   the  rocks  or  from  the  decay 

*  By  the  "  water-table"  is  meant  the  level  cf  the  standing  water  in  the  ground — the 
water  which  is  neither  dried  up  from  the  surface,  nor  drained  away  below,  by  natural 
or  artificial  means.  It  is  nearer  to  the  surface  or  farther  away  from  it  in  proportion  to 
the  completeness  of  the  drainage,  the  dryness  of  the  season,  and  the  amount  of  rain-fall. 


2G  11  ANDY- BO  OK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

of  the  vegetable  matter  from  which  the  soil  was  formed,  are  from 
one  to  three  pounds  in  each  one  hundred  pounds  of  other  sub- 
stances which  go  to  form  the  ashes  of  all  cultivated  plants,  and 
the  fertility  or  barrenness  of  any  soil  which  is  in  good  condition 
in  other  respects,  depends  on  the  presence  or  absence  of  these 
parts.  All  soils,  once  fertile,  which,  without  growing  more  wet, 
have  become  unproductive  (which  have  been  exhausted)  through 
an  improper  system  of  cultivation,  have  become  so  in  consequence 
of  the  removal  of  the  available  supply  of  one  or  more  of  this 
class  of  ingredients,  and  their  fertility  can  be  restored  only  by  the 
addition  of  the  missing  substance,  by  the  application  of  some 
agent  like  lime  or  unlcached  wood  ashes,  or  by  deeper  plowing, 
better  draining,  the  use  of  green  crops,  or  exposure  to  the 
action  of  frost.  The  first  process  is  a  direct  return  of  the 
materials  which  have  been  taken  awav  ;  the  others  cither  bring 
up  similar  matters  from  the  unexhausted  subsoil,  or,  by  causing  the 
corroding,  or  the  pulverization  of  coarser  particles  of  the  soil, 
they  expose  to  the  action  of  roots,  the  same  constituents,  which 
had  been  locked  up  within  them. 

The  following  table  gives  the  names  of  the  most  important  of 
these  plant-feeding  materials,  and  the  proportion  which  they  bear 
to  the  whole  weight  of  the  soil : — * 

Phosphoric  acid I  lb  to     4  lbs    in    1 000  lbs  of  soil 

Sulphuric      "      i  "  3  «'  «•  "  '« 

Magnesia 5  "  10  "  "  "  " 

Chlorine I  •«  z  "  "  "  " 

Soda 3  «'  8  '<  «'  «<  «' 

Potash 1  '«  20  "  "  "  " 

In  a'.l.from ui  ««  47  «'  '<  ' 

These  proportions  vary  a  good  deal  within  certain  limits,  but 
they  are  always  exceedingly  small.  Lime  varies  vcrv  much  more 
widel)'. 

To  sum  up  the  case,  then,  the  soil,  in  a  practical  point  of 
view,  may  be  regarded    as  a  mass   of  material,  which   admits   the 

*  For  greater  simplicity,  1  make  no  account  of  the  si/icates,  oxide  of  iroi.  and  cxiJe  of 
man^arcj?,  and  which  should  be  considered  in  a  scientific  treatment  of  the  subject ;  but 
which  are   nut  of  great  practical  importance   in   this  connection. 


THE    KEY-NOTE    OF    GOOD    FARMING.  27 

roots  of  the  plant,  and  holds  it  in  its  position  ;  absorbs  the 
heat,  air,  and  moisture  which  are  required  to  be  about  them  ; 
and  contains  in  very  small  quantities,  certain  materials  which 
are  necessary  to  growth,  and  which  can  be  supplied  only  by  the 
soil. 

Nitrogen  and  carbonic  acid,  which  are  absorbed  by  the  roots,  are 
necessary  constituents  of  the  soil,  but  as  they  come  originally  from 
the  air,  I  have  deemed  it  best  to  postpone  their  consideration.         ^ 

THE    AIR. 

The  air,  like  the  soil,  consists  of  an  immense  bulk  of  ma- 
terials which,  so  far  as  the  growth  of  plants  is  concerned,  have 
mainly  a  mechanical  action.  This  immense  mass  contains  car- 
bonic acid  in  the  proportion  of  about  one  part  to  twenty-five 
hundred,  and  ammonia  in  very  much  smaller  proportion  ;  it  also 
contains  very  varying  amounts  of  watery  vapor.  These  three 
substances, — for,  although  only  thin  air  to  our  senses,  they  are  as 
substantial  as  the  soil  itself,  and  can  be  weighed,  and  measured, 
taken  apart  and  put  together  again  with  as  much  accuracy  as 
though  they  were  wood  or  stone, — are  the  great  sources  of  the 
material  of  which  all  plants  are  composed.'''  All  of  the  plant, 
whether  the  smallest  grass  or  the  largest  tree,  is  made  up  of  the 
constituents  of  tuater^  carbonic  acid^  and  atnmonia ;  save  only  the 
small  part  that  remains  as  ashes  after  burning. 

One  thousand  pounds  of  red  clover  hay,  out  of  which  the 
water  had  been  dried,  contained — 

Ash 77  lbs.       (from  the  soil.) 

Carbon 474  "  (    '•     carbonic  acid.) 

Hydrosen co   "      "l  ,     ,,  . 

^       ^  ->  M  water.) 

Oxygen 37S    "       i 

Nitrogen 2t    "         (    "     ammonia.) 

1,000  lbs. 

*  As  in  the  case  of  some  of  the  minerals  in  the  soil,  I  make  no  account  in  this  con- 
nection of  nitric  acid,  nor  of  the  many  gnssous  results  of  vegetable  and  animol  decompo- 
sition, as  I  desire  to  state  the  leirlins  principles  of  growth  in  the  simplest  form  possible. 

So  far  as  these  gases    are  definitely  known    to    have    an    influence    on  vegetation, 


28  HANDY-BOOK    OF    IIUSBANDUT. 

These  proportions  vary  somewhat  in  diiferent  analyses,  but  not 
materially.  Such  of  these  substances  as  exist  in  the  air  arc  taken  into 
the  plant  by  the  leaves,  or,  having  been  carried  to  the  soil,  by  rains, 
(or  added  to  it  by  manure,  or  by  the  decay  of  vegetable  matter,) 
through  the  roots.  The  ashes  are  taken  directly  from  the  soil. 
The  manner  in  which  thev  are  taken,  and  the  sources  from  which 
they  are  taken  most  readily,  will  be  discussed  hereafter.  What  I 
desire  to  especiallv  emphasize  in  this  connection  is  the  fact,  that 
by  far  the  larger  part  of  all  plants  comes  originallv  from  an  atmo- 
spheric source,  and  that  only  a  small  percentage  of  their  constitu- 
ent parts  is  supplied  by  the  mineral  portion  of  the  soil. 


THE    PLANT    AND    ITS    FOOD. 

The  cultivated  plant  has  two  sets  of  feeding  apparatus  :  the 
leaves  and  green  stems,  and  the  roots.  The  leaves  and  green 
stems  absorb  carbonic  acid  from  the  air,  and  the  roots  absorb  from 
the  soil  the  mineral  matters^  ammonia^  and  carbonic  acid.  Within 
the  organs  of  the  living  plant  such  changes  take  place  as  are 
necessarv  to  separate  these  different  compounds,  to  reject  what  is 
not  needed,  and  to  assign  to  its  proper  place  in  the  organism  each 
element  that  is  to  be  retained.  These  changes  take  place  without 
our  aid,  are  bcvond  our  control,  and  are  therefore,  in  a  practical 
point  of  view,  not  necessarv  to  be  discussed  here. 

In  red  clover  hav  fullv  ninctv  per  cent., — and  in  all  other  prod- 
ucts about  the  same  proportion, — of  the  dry  weight  consists  of 
carbon.^  oxygen.,  and  hydrogen^  which  are  aKvavs  abundantlv  sup- 
plied to  the  plant  bv  the  decomposition  of  carbonic  acid  and 
water.  Of  the  ashes,  certain  ingredients,  as  magnesia.,  silica., 
sulphuric  acid.,  oxide  of  iron.,  chlorine.,  soda.,  the  oxide  of  man- 
ganese., and  generally  lime.,  are  either  found  in  all  arable  soils  in 


thfyneed  in  no  wayaffrct  the  practices  of  the  farmer.  The  word  "  ammonia"  is  used 
here  (in  accordance  with  a  common  though  not  strictly  fcicntiiic  usage)  to  dcsijnate 
those  nitrogcnouscompounJs  which  under  certain  circumstances  may  aisurne  the  form  of 
ammonu. 


THE    KKY-NOTE    OF    GOOD    FARMING.  29 

such  abundant  quantities  that  it  is  not  necessary  to  add  them  in 
manure,  or  they  may  be  so  cheaply  and  easily  obtained  that  they 
are  of  secondary  importance  in  practice. 

Therefore,  it  is  chiefly  desirable  for  the  farmer  to  give  his  atten- 
tion to  the  sources  from  which  the  plant  may  derive  its  three 
remaining  ingredients, — nitrogen^  phosphoric  ac'id^  zndi potash.  With- 
out these  none  of  our  cultivated  plants  will  attain  their  full  de- 
velopment, and  when  a  soil  ceases  to  producegood  crops,  (supposing 
it  to  be  in  good  mechanical  condition,)  it  is  almost  always  in  con- 
sequence of  a  deficiency  of  one  or  more  of  them.  I  propose 
therefore  to  restrict  my  remarks  about  agricultural  chemistry  to  a 
consideration  of  these  three  substances, — without  a  proper  manage- 
ment of  which  no  man  can  be  an  entirely  practical  farmer.  He 
raises  no  crop  which  does  not  contain  them,  he  sells  no  animal  or 
vegetable  product  which  does  not  take  them  from  his  farm,  and 
he  has  no  soil  so  rich  that  they,  or  some  of  them,  need  not  be 
returned  to  it  to  keep  up  its  fertility.  Whatever  course  of  culti- 
vation he  pursues,  he  should  never  lose  sight  of  these  elements, 
and  he  should  pay  no  greater  heed  to  the  dollars  and  cents  that  he 
receives  and  pays  out  than  to  the  nitrogen,  phosphoric  acid, 
and  POTASH  which  constitute  his  real  available  capital,  and  whose 
increase  and  decrease  mark  the  rise  and  fall  of  his  true  wealth. 

Other  constituents  of  his  soil  are  removed  in  the  crops  and  in 
the  animal  products  sold,  but  they  are  such  as  are  usually  con- 
tained by  the  soil  in  larger  quantities,  or  as  may  be  cheaply  pro- 
cured from  other  sources,  and  they  are  rarely  removed  to  a  suf- 
ficient extent  to  cause  an  impoverishment  of  the  land. 

The  elements  spoken  of  above,  as  well  as  lime  and  other  min- 
eral manures,  will  be  more  fully  treated  in  the  chapter  on  Ma- 
nures ;  but  I  desire,  at  the  outset  of  my  work,  to  call  especial 
attention  to  the  characteristics  and  uses  of  these  three  cardinal 
elements. 


30  HAXDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 


NITROGEN*. 

Nitrogen  io  an  clement  not  only  of  all  plants,  but  of  every  part 
of  the  plant.  Rout,  stem,  branch,  and  leaves,  at  some  period  of 
their  growth,  contain  it  in  every  minutest  part  of  their  structure. 
Its  quantity,  in  comparison  with  the  other  elements,  is  extremely 
small  ;  but,  in  vegetable  growth,  the  importance  of  any  constitu- 
ent of  the  tissues  is  not  to  be  measured  by  its  quantity.  It  may 
play  the  smallest  possible  part  in  the  building  up  of  the  plant,  but 
so  much  of  it  as  is  necessary  must  be  at  the  right  spot  at  the  right 
time.  It  the  sap  lacks  the  atom  of  nitrogen  that  is  required,  all 
the  other  atoms  in  the  sap  go  for  nothing. 

It  generally  forms  from  lo  to  40  parts  of  every  1,000  parts  of 
the  dry  weight  of  the  whole  plant — by  far  the  largest  proportion 
being  lodged  in  the  grain. 

The  experiments  of  Boussingauk  showed  that  1,000  lbs.  of 
each  of  the  following  articles  contain  the  amount  of  nitrogen 
stated  in  the  tabic.  (The  substances  were  thoroughly  dried  at  a 
h  gh  temperature). 

Wheat 23  lbs. 

"       Straw ^     " 

Rye 17     " 

'*  Straw ■>     'i 

J 

Oats »  J  «c 

"      Straw ^  « 

Peas 4;  a 

"     Straw 2 ,  (( 

Potatoes I  -  <( 

Beets I  ^  « 

Turnips jy  ct 

Red  Clover  hjy 21  i< 

This,  like  all   other  tables  based   on  vegetable  analysis    is  to 
be  regarded  as  indicating  the  general  proportion  which  the  different 
elements  bear  to  each   other,  rather  than  the  positive  amount  of 
each.      They  vary  a  little,  according  to  the  conditions  of  growth 
but  not  very  materially. 


THE    KEY-XOTK    OF    GOOD    FARMING.  31 

In  the  crops,  as  grown,  of  course  these  proportions  will  vary 
according  to  the  amount  of  water  they  contain  :  l,ooo  lbs.  of 
turnips  contain  about  900  lbs.  of  pure  water,  while  l,ooo  lbs.  of 
ripe  peas  contain  only  about  86  lbs.  Therefore,  1,000  lbs.  fresh 
peas  contain  about  39  lbs.  of  nitrogen,  while  1,000  lbs.  fresh 
turnips  only  contain  about  \\  lbs. 

The  reason  why  nitrogen,  although  forming  a  so  much  smaller 
part  of  the  substance  of  our  crops,  is  more  necessary  to  be  con- 
sidered by  the  farmer  than  the  other  substances  that  are  derived 
from  the  air,  is  because,  while  there  is  a  certain  amount  furnished 
by  natural  means, — enough  to  enable  plants  to  make  a  tolerable 
growth, — they  are  generallv  benefited  by  the  addition  of  an  in- 
creased supply  as  manure.  The  other  atmospheric  elements  take 
care  of  themselves.  The  air  about  the  leaves  and  the  water  of 
the  sap  contain  them  abundantly,  in  a  form  that  is  always  avail- 
able. With  nitrogen  the  case  is  different.  Although  it  exists  in 
the  atmosphere  in  the  form  most  useful  to  vegetation, — that  of 
ammonia  and  nitric  acid, — the  plant  cannot  usually  obtain  its  sup- 
ply through  the  leaves,  but  it  must  find  its  way  into  the  soil  and 
enter  the  roots  with  the  water  that  ^oes  to  form  the  sap. 

Ammonia  and  nitric  acid  are  the  universal  sources  of  the  supply 
of  nitrogen  to  vegetation.  Ammonia  is  a  gas  formed  during  the 
decomposition  of  vegetable  and  animal  matters.  These  all  con- 
tain nitrogen,  and  when  they  are  destroyed,  either  by  fire  or  by 
decay,  their  nitrogen  escapes  in  the  form  of  ammonia,  or  as  nitric 
acid.  Usually,  the  original  product  of  all  destruction  of  organic 
matters  containing  nitrogen  is  ammonia,  which  gives  great  value 
to  all  animal  manure,  which  is  one  of  the  manurial  ingredients  of 
rain  water,  and  which  is  the  farmer's  best  assistant  in  making  his 
land  produce  the  largest  crops  that  with  its  supply  of  mineral  food, 
it  is  capable  of  growing, 

Liebig,  speaking  of  the  sources  or  the  nitrogen  of  plants  and  of 
the  supply  of  ammonia,  says  : — 

"  We  cannot  suppose  that  a  plant  could  attain  maturity,  even 
"  in  the  richest  vegetable  mould,  without  the  presence  of  matter 
"  containing  nitrogen,  since  we  know  that  nitrogen  exists  in  every 


32  II.VN  1>  Y-]i001v    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"  part  of  the  vegetable  structure.  *******  We 
"  have  not  the  shghtcst  reason  for  believing  that  the  nitrogen  of 
"  the  atmosphere  takes  part  in  the  processes  of  assimilation  of 
*'  plants  and  animals  ;  on  the  contrarv,  we  know  that  many  plants 
"  emit  nitrogen,  which  is  absorbed  by  their  roots,  either  in  a 
"  t!;aseous  form  or  in  solution  in  water.  But  there  are,  on  the 
"  other  hand,  numerous  facts  showing  that  the  formation  in  plants 
"  of  substances  containing  nitrogen  *  *  *  *  takes  place  in 
*'  proportion  to  the  quantity  of  this  e'ement  conveyed  to  their 
**  roots  in  the  state  of  ammonia  derived  from  the  putrefaction 
"  of  animal  matter.  *******  Let  us  picture 
'*  to  ourselves  the  condition  of  a  well-cultivated  farm,  so  large 
*'  as  to  be  independent  of  assistance  from  other  quarters.  On 
**  this  extent  of  land  there  is  a  certain  quantity  of  nitrogen  con- 
*'  tained  both  in  the  corn  and  fruit  which  it  produces,  and  in  the 
"  men  and  animals  which  feed  upon  them,  and  also  in  their  ex- 
**  crements.  We  shall  suppose  this  quantity  to  be  known.  The 
"  land  is  cultivated  without  the  importation  of  any  foreign  sub- 
*'  stance  containing  nitrogen.  Now,  the  products  of  this  farm 
*'  must  be  exchanged  every  J'ear  for  monev  and  other  necessaries 
"  of  life — for  bodies,  therefore,  destitute  of  nitrogen.  A  certain 
*'  proportion  of  nitrogen  is  exported  in  the  shape  of  corn  and 
"  cattle,  and  this  exportation  takes  place  everv  year,  without  the 
"  smallest  compensation  ;  yet  after  a  given  number  of  vears,  the 
*'  quantity  of  nitrogen  will  be  found  to  have  increased.  Whence, 
**  we  may  ask,  comes  this  increase  of  nitrogen  ?  The  nitrogen  in 
*'  the  excrements  cannot  reproduce  itself,  and  the  earth  cannot 
"  yield  it.  Plants,  and  consequently  animals,  must,  therefore, 
*' derive  their  nitrogen  from  the  atmosphere.  ****** 
*'  A  generation  of  a  thousand  million  men  is  renewed  every  thirty 
*'  vears  ;  thousands  of  millions  of  animals  cease  to  live,  and  are 
*'  reproduced  in  a  much  shorter  period.  W^here  is  the  nitrogen 
"  contained  in  them  during  life  ?  There  is  no  question  which 
"  can  be  answered  with  more  positive  certainty.  All  animal  bodies 
"  during  their  decay  vield  to  the  atmosphere  their  nitrogen  in  the 
*' form  of  ammonia.      Even  in  the  bodies  buried  sixty  feet  under 


THE    KET-XOTE    OF    GOOD    FARMING.  33 

*' ground,  in  the  church-yard  of  the  Eglise  des  Innocens^  at  Paris, 
"  all  the  nitrogen  contained  in  the  adipocere  was  in  the  state  of" 
"  ammonia.  ********  The  nitrogen  of  putre- 
"  fied  animals  is  contained  in  the  atmosphere  as  ammonia,  in  the 
*'  state  of  a  gas  which  is  capable  of  entering  into  combination 
"  with  carbonic  acid,  and  of  forming  a  volatile  salt.  Ammonia 
*'  in  its  gaseous  form,  as  well  as  all  its  volatile  compounds,  is  of 
"  extreme  solubility  in  water.  Ammonia,  therefore,  cannot  re- 
''  main  long  in  the  atmosphere,  as  every  shower  of  rain  must 
"  effect  its  condensation,  and  convey  it  to  the  surface  of  the 
'■''  earth.  Hence,  also,  rain  water  must  at  all  times  contain 
"  ammonia,  though  not  always  in  equal  quantity.  It  must  con- 
"  tain  more  in  summer  than  in  spring  or  winter,  because  the 
"  intervals  of  time  between  the  showers  are  in  summer  greater, 
*'  and  when  several  wet  days  occur,  the  rain  of  the  first  must  con- 
*'  tain  more  of  it  than  that  of  the  second.  The  rain  of  a  thunder 
"  storm,  after  a  long  protracted  drought,  ought,  for  this  reason, 
"  to  contain  the  greatest  quantity  conveyed  to  the  earth  at  one 
"  time.      *      *      *      * 

"  It  is  worthy  of  observation  that  the  ammonia  contained  in 
"  rain  and  snow-water  possesses  an  offensive  smell  of  perspira- 
"  tion  and  putrefying  matter, — a  fact  which  leaves  no  doubt 
"  respecting  its  origin." 

To  repeat, — while  there  is  a  certain  amount  of  ammonia  and 
nitric  acid  presented  to  the  roots  of  plants  in  a  state  of  nature, 
the  excessive  growth  at  which  good  farming  aims,  can  be  stimulated 
only  by  the  addition  of  increased  supplies,  either  by  the  applica- 
tion of  manures,  or  by  such  a  system  of  cultivation  as  shall  caus3 
an  increased  absorption  of  ammonia  from  the  air. 

Nitrogen  is  not  only  a  necessary  element  of  all  plants,  it  is 
even  more  largely  a  constituent  of  the  bodies  and  of  the  milk  of 
animals,  and  it  remains  an  object  of  the  greatest  care  of  the 
farmer  through  the  whole  course  of  his  operations.  He  must  first 
procure  it  to  apply  to  his  growing  crops,  must  next  so  use  it  in 
his  stock  feeding  as  to  produce  the  greatest  development  of  meat, 
of  milk,  or  of  wool,  and  then  must  so  economize  that  which  the 


34  IIANDV-BOOIC    OF    IIUSBANDRi. 

animal  has  rejected,  in  the  manure,  as  to  have  the  largest  possible 
suppiv  for  his  future  crops. 


PHOSPHORIC     ACID. 

Phosphoric  acid  is,  in  a  certain  sense,  even  more  important  to 
the  farmer  than  nitrogen.  This  latter  is  supplied  in  limited 
amount  by  natural  process, — it  is  absorbed  by  the  soil  directly  from 
the  atmosphere,  and  it  is  brought  down  in  the  water  of  rains. 
Phosphoric  acid,  on  the  contrary,  is  a  fixed  ingredient  of  the  soil, 
and  it  is  never  brought  to  it  by  wind  and  rain.  We  have,  in  the 
soil,  a  certain  amount,  and  only  a  very  small  amount,  while  of  this, 
the  larger  part  is  locked  up  in  the  interior  of  pebbles,  or  compact 
clods  which  no  root  can  penetrate.  All  that  is  available  to  a  crop 
is  that  which,  being  on  the  surface  of  the  particles  of  the  soil  is 
directly  within  the  reach  of  roots,  and  of  such  roots  as  come  in 
contact  with  those  particles.  Probably,  when  any  soil  has  been 
exhausted  by  improper  husbandrv,  it  is,  in  ninety-nine  cases  out 
of  every  hundred,  the  phosphoric  acid  that  is  gone.  From  Maine 
to  Minnesota  the  gradual  advance  of  "  enterprise," — that  sort  of 
enterprise  which,  as  it  passes  from  east  to  west,  reduces  the 
yield  of  wheat  from  30  to  12  bushels  per  acre, — has  been  mariced 
by  the  taking  up  of  new  lands,  bv  the  production  of  good  crops 
for  a  few  years,  and  of  a  precarious  subsistence  for  a  tew  more, 
and  by  the  destruction  of  the  profitable  fertility  of  the  soil  within 
the  life-time  of  the  second  generation, — all  through  ignorance  or 
disregard  of  the  value  of  phosphoric  acid,  and  of  the  limited 
ability  of  the  most  fertile  soils  to  supply  it  to  consecutive  crops. 
It  is  commonly  urged,  when  phosphoric  acid  is  mentioned,  that 
most  farmers  do  not  know  what  it  is,  that  a  very  large  majority  of 
them  never  heard  of  it.  Speak  of  the  useof  phosphate  of  lime,  (which 
is  valuable  mainlv  on  account  of  its  phosphoric  acid,)  to  a  man 
who  is  unacquainted  with  it,  and  he  will  probably  say  that  it  may 
be  a  good  manure  in  ^'some  parts,"  but  that  he  does  not  know  that 
it  would  do  any  good  on  his  land.  If  he  has  just  settled  on  new 
land  at  the  West,  he  will  show  you  his  deep  black  loam,  that  "  has 


THE    KEY-XOTE    OF    GOOD    FARMING.  35 

more  richness  in  it  than  you  can  get  out  in  a  thousand  years." 
This  would  be  all  very  well,  if  it  were  possible  for  a  farmer  to 
compel  his  crops  to  live  on  the  food  that  he  happens  to  know 
about,  if  roots  took  nothing  from  the  soil  that  he  has  not  heard  of, 
if  plants  did  not  require  the  same  nutriment  in  "all  parts,"  and 
if  "richness"  meant  only  good  color  and  good  tilth. 

So  long  as  we  were  farming  the  stubborn  hillsides  of  New 
England,  and  while  our  population  needed  elbow-room,  while  the 
Mohawk  and  Genesee  valleys  in  New  York,  the  Western 
Reserve  and  rich  river  bottoms  of  Ohio,  and  the  wonderful  prairies 
of  the  farther  West  invited  the  hard-worked  farmers  of  the  East 
to  better  crops,  and  an  easier  life,  it  was  at  least  excusable  that  all 
who  could  get  away  should  mind  the  bidding,  and  go  ;  and  the 
world  is  better  for  their  having  gone, — richer  and  more  free  for  the 
marvelous  people  and  the  marvelous  opportunities  of  the  North- 
west. But  now,  the  case  is  greatly  changed.  The  richest  lands 
of  the  country  have  been  brought  under  cultivation — many  of 
them  have  been,  already,  ground  under  its  heel.  Emigration  from 
the  Genesee  Valley,  or  from  Illinois,  to  Kansas  or  to  Colorado,  is 
not  excusable,  on  any  agricultural  grounds,  and  it  can  only  do 
harm  if  its  object  is  to  seek  richer  lands.  Richer  than  the  pres- 
ent lands  once  were,  the  new  lands  cannot  be,  and  any  course  of 
cultivation  that  would  keep  these  from  speedily  running  down 
would  equally  renovate  the  older  soils. 

In  the  monthly  report  of  the  Department  of  Agriculture  for 
October,  1867,  the  editor,  in  an  article  headed  "Wheat  Culture 
Ruinous,"  says,  "  Is  proof  of  impoverishment  wanted  ?  one  witness 
/'  only  is  needed, — the  soil  itself.  First  thirty  bushels  per  acre,  is 
"  the  boast  of  the  farmer  ;  then  the  yield  drops  to  twenty-five,  to 
"  twenty,  to  fifteen,  and  finally  to  ten  and  eight.  Minnesota 
"  claimed  twenty-two  bushels  average,  a  few  years  ago,  (some  of 
"  her  enthusiastic  friends  made  it  twenty-seven,)  but  she  will 
"  scarcely  average,  this  year,  twelve,  and  will  never  again  make 
"  twentv-two  under  her  present  mode  of  farming.  To  be  sure, 
"  there  are  excuses.  The  seasons  do  not  suit  as  formerly,  blight 
"  or  rust  comes,  or  the  fly  invades,  but  all  these  things  are  evi- 


36  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

*  dences  of  exhaustion,  and  prey  upon  the  soil  in  proponion  to  its 
'  deterioration.  •'  "'  "  "  "  The  average  yield  of  wheat  in 
'■  Entjland   is  stated  at  twcntv-cight   bushels   per  acre,  never  less 

*  than    twenty-six,    unless    in  a   year  of  unusually  bad  harvests. 

*  The  average  in  this  country,  is  less  than  half  of  the  lowest  of 

*  of  these  figures.  Why  is  it.'  Certainlv  not  because  our  soil  is 
*■  naturally  poorer  than  theirs,  neither  because  our  climate  is  so 
*■  much  worse  for  wheat  culture.  It  is  mainlv  for  want  of  a 
'  suitable  rotation  of   crops,   of   a  more    careful    husbandry    of 

*  resources  of  fertilization,  of  a  more  thorough  and  careful  cul- 
*■  ture." 

To  show  to  what  extent  the  clement  under  consideration 
enters  into  the  composition  of  the  crops  that  we  raise,  and  the 
various  farm  products  that  we  sell,  attention  is  asked  to  the 
following  table  : — 

yimount    cf  Phosphoric  AciJ  contained  in  I,ooo  Ibi.     of  the  Aihes  of  each  of   the  fUoiv- 

iug  substances  : — 

Grain  of  Wheat  (average  of  six  analyses) 49S  lbs. 

"         Indian  Corn 501   " 

"  Rye  (average  of  two  analyses) 493  " 

"  Oats  (with  shell) J49  " 

"  Buckwhc-t 5C0  " 

"  Beans 357   « 

Hay 1 20   ■' 

Clover 63   " 

Potatoes 113   " 

Beets 6 J   " 


M;ik. 

Bjnes. 


ai7  " 

393  " 

Lean  Meat  (about) 300  ' 

It  may  be  true  that  farmers  generally  do  not  know  much 
about  phosphoric  acid,  but  it  is  equally  true  that  it  is  high  time 
they  learned. 

In  England  they  have  got  this  knowledge  to  a  certain  dc<jree — 
as  we  are  getting  it  now, — at  great  cost, — and  they  are  putting 
their  knowledge  to  such  eager  account  that  they  even  ransack 
the  1  at  If-fields  of  Europe  for  human  bones,  and  quarry  the  phos- 
phatic  rocks  of  the  whole  world  to  replenish  their  soils.      We  are 


THE    KEY-NOTE    OF    GOOD    FARMING.  37 

beginning  to  follow  the  same  course  here,  and  in  the  older  parts 
of  the  country  phosphates  of  lime,  (good  and  bad,)  meet  with 
ready  sale.  Still,  as  a  class,  we  are  learning  only  one-half  of 
what  we  ought  to  learn.  We  should  know  not  only  how  to  get 
a  supply  of  phosphoric  acid  for  manure,  but  how  to  economize 
what  we  already  have,  and  how  to  keep  up  the  available  supply 
in  the  soil  ;  and  I  bespeak  attention  to  the  further  treatment  of 
this  subject  under  the  heads  of  "  iVIanures,"  "  Feeding,"  and 
*■'  Rotation  of  Crops." 

POTASH. 

What  has  been  said  of  the  importance  of  phosphoric  acid  is  in 
a  measure  true  of  potash.  Fortunately  this  substance  has  a 
name  and  many  characteristics  which  are  familiar  to  all,  and  its 
discussion  does  not  require  the  use  of  "  new-fangled  "  names  and 
expressions. 

It  is  second  to  phosphoric  acid  in  the  extent  to  which  it  is  used 
by  plants,  as  will  be  seen  by  the  following  table: — 

Amount  of  Potash  contained  in  1,000  lbs.  of  the  Ashes  of  the  following  substances: — 

Grain  of  Wheat  (average  of  six  analyses) 137  lbs. 

"      Indian  Corn 250  " 

"      Rye 220  " 

"      Oats  (witli  shell) I23  " 

"      Buckwheat 87  "       , 

"      Beans 462  " 

Hay 300  " 

Clover 161  " 

Potatoes cjr  " 

Beets jgo  " 

Tobacco  leaves 264  " 

Note. — The  proportion  of  potash  varies  considerably  in  growth  under  different  cir- 
cumstances. 

The  exhaustion  of  the  tobacco  lands  of  the  South,  and  of  the 
potato  fields  of  western  Connecticut,  is  mainly  due  to  the  removal 
of  their  potash. 

I  postpone  the  further  discussion  of  this  subject  also  to  the 
chapters  on  "  Manures,"  etc. 


3S  11  ANDY- BO  OK    OF    II  USB  AX  DRY. 

Having  in  the  foregoing  remarks  struck  what  I  believe  to  be 
the  key-note  of  the  scientific  practice  of  agriculture,  and  indicated 
the  points  which  seem  to  me  to  be  of  the  most  vital  importance  to 
every  farmer  who  would  regulate  his  operations,  so  far  as  is  possi- 
ble, by  what  is  positively  known  of  the  fundamental  laws  of  fer- 
tility and  growth,  I  proceed  to  the  consideration  of  the  daily  de- 
tails of  his  business,  the  "  How  to  do  it"  of  practical  farmino;  ; 
— and  I  shall,  whenever  the  occasion  offers,  recommend  that  the 
treatment  of  the  soil  and  its  products,  of  the  live  stock  of  the  farm, 
and  of  manures,  be  based  on  what  has  already  been  shown  to  be 
the  very  groundwork  of  true  economy  in  agriculture. 


CHAPTER    IV. 


FENCES    AND    FARM    BUILDINGS. 


FENCES. 


What  fences  to  have,  and  how  to  make  them,  are  questions 
which  may  well  engage  the  attention  of  the  new  occupier  of  a 
farm, — and  of  the  old  occupier  too,  for  that  matter. 

There  is  a  great  deal  said  about  the  advantage  of  dispensing 
entirely  with  fences,  as  they  do  in  many  parts  of  Europe, — and  it 
is  said  with  much  truth.  But,  unfortunately,  in  this  respect  Eu- 
rope is  not  America,  and  so  long  as  we  keep  cattle  at  pasture,  and 
have  not  pauper  children  to  watch  them,  so  long  must  we  build 
fences  to  keep  them  from  encroaching  on  our  neighbor's  property, 
and  from  straying  into  our  own  grain  fields. 

It  will  be  a  happy  day  for  American  farmers  when  they  can 
escape  the  necessity  for  building  expensive  fences,  and  can  bring 
into  their  fields,  and  into  clean  cultivation,  the  weedy  headlands 
which  are  now  worse  than  wasted  ;  but  that  day  will  not  come  in 
many  a  long  year,  and,  for  the  present,  we  must  content  ourselves 
with  making  fences  as  little  expensive,  and  as  little  of  a  nuisance, 
as  is  possible. 

There  are  whole  counties  in  New  England,  and  probably  in 
southern  New  York,  in  which  all  the  farms  are  not  worth  so 
much  to-day  as  it  would  cost  to  build  the  fences  within  their 
boundaries ;  and  there  are  whole  townships  in  which  the  fields 
will  not  average  two  acres  in  extent.  I  think  I  have  seen  farms 
in  which  they  average  less  than   one  acre.      I    know  some  fences. 


40  II  A  N  D  Y  •  D  0  0  K    OF    n  U  S  B  A  N  D  R  Y. 

in  Connecticut,  which  arc  eight  feet  wide  at  the  top,  the  sides  being 
of  iiunicnsc  blocks  of  granite  laid  to  a  face,  and  the  center  filled 
with  smaller  stones. 

Under  the  best  management  such  a  fence,  with  its  headlands, 
will  occupy  land  a  rod  wide, — or  an  acre  for  every  half  mile.  Of 
course,  the  reason  for  building  fences  such  as  this  is  that  there  are 
stones  to  be  cleared  from  the  land  ;  but  it  would  be  much  cheaper 
to  bury  the  larger  stones  where  they  lie,  by  digging  pits  under 
them  and  dropping  them  out  of  reach  of  the  plow,  while  the 
smaller  ones  could  be  disposed  of  much  more  cheaply,  and  in  a 
way  to  do  good  instead  of  harm,  by  digging  large  trenches  and 
making  stone  drains.  It  costs  less  to  dig  a  ditch  four  feet  deep 
and  two  feet  wide,  on  an  average,  and  put  the  stone  in  them  than 
to  lay  up  a  good  wall  of  the  same  dimensions.  In  the  one  case 
we  make  quite  a  serviceable  drain,  and  in  the  other  we  encumber 
the  land  and  obstruct  cultivation. 

Of  course,  in  our  ordinary  method  of  managing  a  farm,  we  must 
have  fences  around  all  fields  which  are  to  be  used  entirely  or  partly 
for  pasture.  We  must  have  lawful  fences  around  the  whole  farm, 
and  must  inclose  the  roads  by  which  cattle  are  to  be  driven  to 
pasture.  Still,  the  smallest  possible  amount  of  fencing  that  will 
accomplish  this,  we  should  always  seek  to  have. 

Pasture  fields  should  be  as  large  as  is  consistent  with  the  neces- 
sity for  giving  them  occasional  rests.  The  whole  pasture  land  of 
a  farm  should  be  divided  into  not  more  than  three  fields,  and 
two  would  be  better  ;  although,  if  they  are  never  to  be  plowed, 
division  fences,  which  may  be  standing,  will  do  less  harm  than  on 
cultivated  land. 

So  far  as  the  arable  land  of  the  farm  is  concerned,  I  think  that 
the  greatest  economy  of  cultivation,  and  the  best  results  in  crops 
would  be  secured  if  it  were  not  divided  by  fences  at  all.  The 
only  reason  why  it  should  be,  is,  to  enable  us  to  pasture  mowing 
lands  in  the  fall,  or  to  use  them  for  pasture  after  they  have  ceased 
to  produce  paying  crops  of  grass, — neither  of  which  practices  are 
consistent  with  the  best  cultivation.  A  good  hay  field  should 
never  have  a   hoot   upon  it,  except   during  the  operations  of  top- 


FEXCES    AND    FARil    BUILDINGS.  41 

dressing,  rolling,  or  harvesting.  If  it  produces  a  heavy  crop  of 
hay,  that  is  enough  to  ask  of  it,  and  any  attempt  to  get  more  by 
pasturing  animals  upon  it  will  lessen  its  value  for  future  crops, 
much  more  than  Its  use  as  pasture  will  be  worth.  If  it  has  ceased 
to  produce  good  hav,  in  paying  quantities,  it  should  be  renewed, 
either  by  being  brought  into  cultivation,  or  otherwise. 

In  giving  this  advice,  I  assume  that  we  have  no  more  land  under 
the  plow,  and  in  meadow,  than  we  can  properly  attend  to.  If  we 
have,  it  will  probably  pay  best  to  turn  the  excess  out  to  pasture. 
When  we  go  to  the  expense  of  plowing,  cultivating,  and  harvestino-, 
we  should  so  manage  as  to  get  the  largest  possible  return  for  our 
labor,  and  that  we  shall  get  by  raising  the  largest  crops  that  can 
be  got  with  a  reasonable  outlay  of  money  and  work.  Three  tons 
of  hay  per  acre  is  within  the  easy  possibilities  of  any  ordinarily 
good  land,  if  it  is  properly  managed  ;  and  it  will  cost  less,  and  pay 
better  to  get  it  from  one  acre  than  from  two,  to  say  nothing  of 
its  better  quality. 

This  subject  will  be  discussed  more  fully  hereafter,  in  consider- 
ing the  rotation  of  crops,  and  the  treatment  of  grass  lands. 

If  the  course  suggested  above  is  adopted,  it  will  be  best  not  to 
have  the  course  of  the  plow  and  of  the  mowing-machine  inter- 
rupted by  fences,  and  to  have  no  weed-breeding  headlands  bordering 
our  plowed  fields.  Even  with  a  board  fence,  or  an  iron  one, 
which  occupies  but  little  room,  we  must  leave  a  space  of  at  least 
four  feet  on  each  side  that  cannot  be  v/ell  cultivated — a  total 
width  of  a  half-rod  given  up  to  weeds,  or  at  least  wasted  from 
the  field,  and  an  annoyance  in  many  ways.  The  fence  and  head- 
lands around  a  square  field  of  five  acres  will  occupy  nearly  three- 
quarters  of  an  acre.  To  this  loss  add  the  time  spent  in  turning 
at  the  ends  of  furrows,  in  plowing  and  in  cultivating,  and  the 
trampling  of  the  rows  in  one  case,  and  of  the  plowed  land  in  the 
other,  and  the  expense  of  keeping  fences  in  repair,  and  we  shall 
have  a  formidable  sum   total  of  the  cost  of  too  many  fences. 

It  would  be  impossible  to  establish  any  universal  rule  for  all 
farms,  and  for  all  farmers,  but  it  may  be  stated  as  a  good  general 
principle   that   every   farm    should    have  the  smallest  amount  of 


42  II  AN  ii  Y  -  j;i)(ii:  of   iii\suandhy. 

fencing  that  will  answer  the  only  purpose  of  fences, — that  is,  to 
keep  loose  animals  where  they  belong. 

All  that  has  been  said  against  the  inonlinatc  use  of  fences,  does 
not  by  any  means  lessen  the  importance  of  making  such  fences 
as  wc  do  have  in  the  best  and  most  thorough  manner.  In  the 
first  place,  boundary  fences  must  be  "  lawful  fences,"  which  have 
been  described,  (more  forcibly  than  elegantly,)  as  "  horse  high^  built 
strongs  and p'lg  tight." 

Mr.  Todd*  says  : 

"  Our  civil  law,  in  relation  to  fences,  which  appears  to  be 
"  founded  on  principles  of  strictest  equitv,  provides  that  where  land 
*'  is  inclosed,  and  lies  contiguous,  and  possessed  bv  two  different 
*'  owners,  each  must  build  and  maintain  a  good  lawful  fence  on 
*'  one-half  the  distance  of  the  entire  line  between  their  land. 
*'  According  to  law,  A  may  not  build  his  half  of  the  fence  exactly 
"  on  the  line,  neither  may  B,  but  each  must  erect  his  fence  on 
*'  his  own  land  as  near  to  the  line  as  he  desires,  but  neighbors 
"  usually  erect  their  fences  exactly  on  the  line.      ***** 

"  If  A  refuses  to  build  or  maintain  one  equal  half  of  a  line 
*'  fence  between  his  land  and  the  land  owned  by  B,  by  giving  A 
**  thirty  days'  legal  notice  that  he  must  build  or  repair  his  line 
*'  fence,  and  A  neglects  to  do  so,  B  may  build  or  repair  such 
"  fence  and  collect  of  A  the  expense  of  building,  the  same  as  for 
**  any  other  indebtedness. 

"  If  A  has  land  not  inclosed,  or  '  open  to  the  commons,'  which 
*'  lies  contiguous  to  the  land  of  B,  if  B  desires  to  have  his  land 
"  inclosed,  he  must  build  all  the  fence  between  them.  If  A  should 
''  then  inclose  his,  he  cannot  hold  one-half  of  the  line  fence. 
*'  He  must  allow  B  to  remove  one-half  of  the  fence,  and  he  (A) 
**  must  build  a  fence  in  the  room  of  it,  or  he  mav  purchase  one- 
"  half  of  it.  If  he  refuses  to  do  either,  B,  the  owner  of  the 
"  fence,  may  prosecute  A,  and  recovc-r  pay  for  half  of  the  line 
"■  fence. 

"  B  may  not,  in  a  fit  of  resentment  or  frenzy,  remove  his 
"  division  fence,  and  throw  open  his  own  fields  to  the  commons 

*Younc  Farmers'  Manual,  vol.  i.,  page  285. 


FENCES    AND    FARM    BUILDINGS.  43 

"  with  impunity,  unless  he  gives  A  ten  days'  notice  of  his  inten- 
"  tion  to  throw  open  his  fields  to  the  commons  between  Novem- 
"  ber  and  April.  During  the  time  from  April  to  November,  if  a 
"  line  fence  is  removed  by  B,  and  A  is  made  to  sustain  any  loss 
"  by  such  removal,  B  is  responsible  for  the  damage." 

Four  feet  and  six  inches  is  considered  a  lawful  barrier  against 
any  animals,  and  a  fence  lower  than  that  is,  in  the  eve  of  the  law, 
a  sufficient  barrier  against  the  smaller  animals.  The  court  must 
decide  whether  the  trespassing  animals  were  unruly^  and  whether 
the   fence  was   sufficient  to   keep  them  out    if  they  had  not  been. 

So  far  as  interior  fences  are  concerned,  it  should  be  remembered 
that  a  poor  fence  makes  an  unruly  animal  and  a  good  fence  an 
orderly  one.  It  is  better,  where  horses  and  cattle  are  to  be  kept,  to 
make  all  fences  four  and  a  half  feet  high,  though  a  part  of  this  height 
may  consist  of  a  narrow  bank  of  earth  on  which  the  fence  is  built. 

The  material  of  which  the  fence  is  to  be  made  must  depend 
mainly  on  what  is  most  easily  accessible.  In  heavily  wooded,  new 
countries,  capital  fences  are  made  of  the  roots  of  large  trees,  torn 
from  the  ground  and  set  up  edgewise.  Where  wood  is  plenty  and 
stone  scarce,  rail  fences  are  generally  cheapest,  although,  in  good 
lumber  districts,  board  fences,  with  their  greater  durability,  are 
more  desirable,  while,  for  general  use,  about  houses,  lawns,  and 
gardens,  a  picket  fence  has  some  great  advantages  ;  and  when 
there  arf  good  stones  to  be  had,  nothing  can  supplant  stone  walls. 
Where  nothing  is  to  be  had  but  a  fertile  soil,  that  of  itself  must 
furnish  the  fencing  by  producing  a  stout  growth  of  hedge -row. 
If  the  material  for  the  fence  must  be  brought  from  a  distance, 
iron  wire  netting  is  best  to  be  used. 

To  discuss  the  manner  of  making  all  kinds  of  rail,  board, 
picket,  and  iron  fences,  (which  offer  a  very  great  variety  of  charac- 
teristics, and  may  be  made  to  suit,)  and  the  growing  of  hedges, 
which  is  a  study  by  itself,  would  either  swell  this  volume  to  a 
very  undesirable  size,  or  compel  the  exclusion  of  other  topics 
which  are  of  greater  importance.* 

*  Those  who  seek  information  on  these  subjects  will  find  them  treated  at  length  in 
the  "  Youn^  Farmers'  Manual,"  anJ  in  Warder's  '•  Hedges  and  Evergreens." 


44-  n  AX  I)  V  •  i;ooK  OF   husbandry 


STONE     WALLS. 


Stone  walls  and  rail  fences  arc  the  great  fences  of  the  country. 
The  latter  require  very  much  less  skill  to  build  in  an  enduring 
manner  than  the  former,  and  their  proper  construction  is  very 
much  easier.  In  any  country  where  they  are  much  used,  they 
are  generally  well  made,  and  the  different  forms  of  "  worm," 
"post  and  rail,"  "  stake  and  rider,"  etc.,  are  too  well  understood 
to  need  more  than  a  passing  notice  in  a  hand-book. 

The  stone  wall,  however, — when  well  made  the  best  of  all 
fences, — is  generally  built  in  the  most  unpractical  and  uneconomi- 
cal wav  possible.  Probably  the  majority  of  the  stone  fences  in 
New  England  commenced  their  career  as  a  tier  of  boulders  and 
irregular  stones  set  one  above  the  other,  on  the  surface  of  the 
ground,  and  kept  in  position  by  a  very  nice  adjustment  of  their 
centers  of  gravity,  and  such  of  them  as  were  without  yearly  care 
have  ended  it  as  long  heaps  of  rubbish,  covered  with  brambles  and 
elder  bushes, — a  sort  of  spontaneous  hedge  with  a  stone  founda- 
tion, flanked  by  thistles,  cockles,  iron  weed,  and  golden  rod  ; — 
possessing  all  the  disadvantages  and  performing  few  of  the  offices 
of  a  fence. 

A  poor  stone  wall  is  the  worst  fence  that  can  be  imagined.  It 
is  thrown  down  by  every  winter's  frost,  and  must  be  repaired, — 
not  merely  every  year,  but,  worst  of  all,  every  spring.,  after  the 
frost  is  all  out  of  the  ground,  and  when  spring  work  is  pressing. 

A  good  stone  wall,  with  a  broad  base,  a  sure  foundation,  plenty 
of  lock-stones,  and  well  capped,  is  expensive  to  make,  but  when 
made  it  is  made  for  a  life-time.  No  unruly  animal  can  break  it 
down,  no  frost  can  "  heave  "  it,  and  it  need  never  be  touched 
from  one  end  of  the  year  to  the  other. 

The  two  great  requisites  are,  a  solid  and  dry  foundation  and 
proper  construction.  More  than  in  the  case  of  almost  any  thing 
else  there  is  a  good  and  a  bad  way  to  do  the  work.  Two  walls 
may  be  built  with  the  same  stones,  on  the  same  ground,  and  at 
the  same  expense,  and  one  be  good  and  the  other  good  for 
nothinc;. 


FENCES    AND    FARM    BUILDINGS. 


45 


The  following  cut  (Fig.  i)  shows  the  cross-section  of  a  wall  two 
and  a  half  feet  wide  at  the  base,  one  and  a  half  at  the  top,  and 
four  and  a  half  feet  high,  which  is  hardly  worth  the  stone  it  con- 
tains. It  stands  on  level  ground,  with  no  Fir.  i. 
drainage,  and  no  foundation  other  than  a 
moist  soil.  Its  stones  are  laid  up  on  the 
independent  principle — all  that  each  one 
asks  of  another  is  a  place  to  rest.  The 
sides  are  straight  and  the  top  level.  To 
all  outward  appearance,  it  is  perfectlv 
good.  But  when  winter  sets  in,  the  ^"^iy^ 
freezing  ground  will  raise  the  whole  con- 
cern perhaps,  an  inch,  in  the  air  ;  warm  weather  comes  and 
thaws  out  the  warm  side  first,  and  it  settles  an  inch  below  the 
level  of  the  other  side  ;  then  another  frost  lifts  it  up  again,  and 
another  thaw  settles  it.  A  few  such  rackings  topple  down  a  lot 
of  stones  against  the  side  of  the  wall  ;  then  comes  another  frost, 
and  these  stones  keep  in  the  ground  until  after  the  opposite  side 
has  thawed,  when  that  goes  down,  and  more  stones  fall  that 
way,  or  the  wall  gets  a  twist.  A  few  winters  of  such  racking 
work  will  finish  the  wall,  and  it  must  be  rebuilt. 


Fig.  2  shows  the  cross-section  of  a  wall  built  of  the  same  stones 
laid  in  the  proper  manner,  on  a  suitable  foundation.  The  first 
thing  has  been  to  make  a  sufficient  drain  (which,  for  this  purpose, 


4G  11  A  N  I>  V -iJO-tK.     OF     Jl  L' .<]'.  A  N  1»  H  V  . 

need  not  be  more  than  two  and  a  half  feet  deep)  to  remove  the 
water  of  saturation.  Then  the  earth  has  been  plowed  up  into  a 
ridge  a  foot  above  the  general  level  of  the  ground,  with  a  good 
water  furrow  at  each  side.  On  this  ridge,  after  it  has  had  a  vear 
to  settle,  the  foundation  course  has  been  laid  of  the  largest  stones 
well  bedded,  well  "  chocked  up,"  and  with  "  broken  joints " 
wherever  the  stones  were  not  long  enough  to  reach  entirely  across 
the  wall. 

If  some  of  the  stones  are  so  large  as  to  reach  six  inches  or  a  foot 
beyond  the  wall  on  each  side,  there  is  no  objection  to  their  use 
next  to  the  ground.  Above  this  course  the  stones  should  be  well 
selected  and  so  laid  (on  their  best  faces)  that  all  of  the  smaller 
ones  shall  be  bound  together  bv  long  ones  which  reach  entirely 
across  the  wall,  or  at  least  have  a  good  bearing  on  each  side  of 
the  joint  between  them.  This  "locking"  is  the  most  important 
part  of  the  whole  operation,  and  without  it,  no  wall,  even  if  built 
of  square  blocks  of  hewn  stone,  will  withstand  the  movement 
against  which  even  the  best  foundation  cannot  entirely  protect  it. 
The  cap-stones,  selected  during  the  building  of  the  wall,  should 
reach  entirely  across  the  top.  They  had  better  be  even  six  inches 
too  wide  than  one  inch  too  narrow,  and  the  heavier  thev  are  the 
better  will  be  their  binding  effect. 

Concerning  the  face  of  the  wall,  it  is  worthy  of  remark  that, 
as  a  genera!  rule,  too  much  smoothness  should  not  be  sought  after. 
The  general  line  of  the  face  should  be  true,  and  the  crevices 
should  be  sufficiently  well  chinked  to  give  each  stone  a  firm  sup- 
port, but  the  smooth  faces  of  the  stones  had  better  be  laid  diwn 
than  toward  the  face,  as  soliditv  is  of  more  value  than  smoothness. 
In  a  park  wall  a  smooth  surface  is  verv  desirable  ;  in  a  farm  wal^ 
extra  smoothness  should  be  sacrificed  to  soliditv. 

If  a  stone  wall  is  built  in  the  manner  last  described,  the  chief 
care  that  will  be  necessarv  for  its  preservation  will  be  to  prevent 
boys  from  accepting  the  invitation  which  its  broad,  level  top  offers 
for  a  run  -,  if  the  cap-stones  are  not  disturbed,  and  if  its  chinks 
are  not  loosened  by  climbing,  it  will  not  need  repairing  for  many 
years. 


FENCES     AND    FARM     BUILDINGS. 


47 


A  very  common  and  a  very  good  substitute  for  the  ridge  at  the 
bottom  of  the  wall,  is  a  trench  from  one  to  two  feet  deep,  filled 
with  small  stones,  but  even  in  this  case  it  is  better  to  have  an 
underdrain,  directly  beneath,  or  at  the  side  of  the  wall.  If  beneath 
it,  with  at  least  six  inches  of  well-rammed  earth  separating  it 
from  the  small  stones  in  the  trench,  lest  earth  be  carried  into  the 
drain  by  surface  water  and  choke  it  up. 


GATES. 


Gates  are  so  much  better  than  bars  that  they  ought  to  be  uni- 
versally used  wherever  frequent  passage  with  vehicles  is  necessary. 
Bars  being  much  simpler,  and  not  liable  to  get  out  of  order,  are 
sufficiently  good  for  the  entrances  to  pasture-fields,  but  the  time 
lost  in  taking  them  entirely  out,  when  the  entrance  must  be  fre- 
quently used  for  wagons,  is   a   sufficient   objection   to   their  use  in 

Fig.  J. 


such  cases.  The  difficulty  of  making  a  gate  that  will  swing  wel' 
on  its  hinges,  latch  easily,  and  swing  clear  of  the  ground,  year 
after  year,  is  to  me  one  of  the  mysteries.     The  tendency  of  gates 


4g  IIANDY-BOuK    OF    IIUSUAXI»RY. 

to  "sae>"  and  of  hinge  hooks  to  work  loose,  seems  to  defy  the 
wisest  mechanical  skill  and  to  overturn  all  our  preconceived  ideas 
of  the  strength  of  material. 

There  are  gates  which  are  always  in  order,  which  close  of  them- 
selves, and  which  latch  when  closed,  but  they  are  generally  either 
very  new  or  very  expensive.  A  good,  cheap,  farm-gate,  which 
will  always  be  in  order,  is  very  much  needed,  and  the  need  has 
given  rise  to  no  end  of  inventions. 

These,  however,  seem  generally  to  seek  to  overcome  the  diffi- 
culty by  a  complication  of  parts,  or  by  some  device  which  sooner 
or  later  fails  in  practice. 

So  far  as  our  present  experience  extends,  the  simplest  gate  is 
the  best.  Probably  as  good  a  form  as  any  is  that  shown  in  Fig.  3. 
Its  most  important  parts  are  the  heel  post^  A,  the  arm^  B,  and  the 
itrut^  C. 

On  these  we  must  chiefly  depend  to  prevent  sagging.  They 
form  together  a  right-angled  triangle,  and  if  made  of  hard  wood, 
accurately  fitted  together  and  well  pinned  or  bolted,  will  maintain 
their  position  as  well  as  any  other  form.  The  other  parts  of  the 
gate  should  be  made  as  light  as  possible,  and  all,  except  the  latch 
post,  D,  are  as  well  made  of  pine  as  of  heavier  wood. 

The  arrangement  of  the  slats  and  tie-pieces  is  not  very  essen- 
tial. The  strap  of  the  upper  hinge  should  run  out  at  least  two 
feet  on  each  side  of  the  arm,  and  be  securely  bolted.  The  hook 
of  the  top  hinge  should  pass  entirely  through  the  post  and  be 
fastened  by  a  nut,  the  thread  being  cut  far 
enough  down  on  the  hook  to  enable  us  to 
draw  it  up,  little  by  little,  as  the  front  end 
of  the  gate  settles. 

The  lower  hinge  of  the  gate  is  better, 
in  all  cases,  to  be  made  as  represented  in 
Fig.  4.  This  is  so  arranged  that  the  gate, 
unless  fastened  open,  will  close  of  itself.  It  is  much  better  to  be 
obliged  to  fasten  a  gate  open,  in  case  of  need,  than  to  run  the 
risk  of  its  being  carelessly  left  open.  The  post  on  which  the 
gate  hangs  is  a   very  important  part  of  the  arrangement.      Unless 


FENCES    AXD    FARiL    BUILDINGS.  49 

it    remains   firmly  in  its  perpendicular  position,  the   best  gate  will 
work  badlv. 

The  best  gate-post  for  farm  purposes,  is  a  single  long  stone, 
but  a  good  stick  of  hard  wood,  set  not  less  than  five  feet  in  the 
ground,  and  filled  around  at  least  for  three  feet  below  the  surface 
with  small  stones,  so  that  the  frost  can  have  no  effect  on  it,  is 
good  enough — while  it  lasts.  The  various  devices  for  holding  the 
post  upright  bv  rods,  or  braces,  are  of  little  effect. 

The  post  against  which  the  gate  is  fastened  when  shut,  it  is  not 
so  important  to  have  set  deeply.  It  need  only  be  firm  enough 
to  withstand  the  racking  to  which  it  will  be  subjected  when  a 
high  wind  blows  directly  against  the  gate.  It  ought,  for  this  pur- 
pose, to  be  a  stout  stick  or  stone,  set  not  less  than  three  and  a 
half  feet  in  the  ground,  and  protected  against  the  action  of  frost 
as  recommended  for  the  other  post. 

The  gate  may  be  fastened  by  a  hook,  a  latch,  a  bolt,  or  a  pin. 
In  either  case,  the  fastening  should  be  about  half  way  between  the 
top  and  the  bottom,  so  that  the  force  of  direct  winds  will  have  an 
equal  bearing  above  and  below.  If  fastened  at  the  top  or  bottom, 
the  gate  would  be  more  racked  in  heavy  blows. 

The  form  of  latches  are  various.  That  which  seems  to 
me  the  best  for  farm-gates  is  shown  in  Fig  3,  which  is  a 
bar  of  hard  wood  passing  easily  through  two  slots  in  p- 
the  gate,  and  hung  lightly  on  the  short  straps  of  iron,  so 
that  it  will  swing  freely  back  and  forth,  hanging  natu- 
rally in  such  a  position  that  it  will  enter  a  groove  in  the 
post  (Fig  5),  or  better,  a  space  between  two  blocks  in 
front  of  the  post.  This  space  should  be  at  least  half  an 
inch  wider  than  the  thickness  of  the  bolt,  and  the  blocks 
should  slope  off  gradually,  and  be  faced  with  sheet-iron, 
over  which  the  end  of  the  latch  will  slip  easily.  When 
the  gate  is  closed,  this  inclined  plane  or  slope  forces  the  latch 
back,  and  when  it  reaches  the  groove  it  drops  in  by  its  own 
weight. 


50  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 


FARM    BUILDINGS. 

Concerning  the  dwelling-house,  it  is  not  worth  while  for  me  to 
say  any  thing,  except  so  far  as  relates  to  the  dairy  department, 
and  this  will  be  treated  hereafter  under  its  proper  head. 
I  Although  the  dwelling  is  a  very  important  clement  of  farm 
economy,  the  tastes  of  individuals  and  their  ability  to  spend 
money  for  ornament  and  for  convenience  vary  so  greatly,  that 
even  a  tolerably  full  discussion  of  the  architecture  of  farm 
dwelling-houses  would  require  very  much  more  space  than  could 
here  be  given  to  it.  In  the  vicinity  of  towns  there  are  always 
architects  and  builders  whose  services  can  be  commanded  when- 
ever necessary.  In  the  more  remote  frontier  districts,  the  simpler 
style  of  dwelling,  which  is  all  that  the  opportunities  of  the  situa- 
tion allow,  is  usually  built  without  the  aid  of  skilled  labor,  and 
for  temporary  purposes  only.  Barns,  sheds,  hay-barracks,  sheep- 
folds,  poultry-houses,  etc.,  belong  more  properly  to  the  range  of 
subjects  under  consideration.  The  first  principle  to  be  observed 
is,  so  far  as  possible,  to  bring  every  thing  within  the  same  four 
walls  and  under  the  same  roof,  and  to  adjust  the  size  of  the 
structure,  not  so  much  to  the  present  requirements,  as  to  the 
future  needs  of  the  farm. 

In  a  very  large  majority  of  cases,  however,  it  is  not  practicable 
to  follow  this  rule.  It  would  require  a  larger  investment  at  the 
outset,  than  most  farmers  would  be  able  to  make,  especially  in 
view  of  the  many  other  necessary  expenses  which  must  be  de- 
frayed from  their  usually  limited  capital.  Yet  in  all  cases  where 
such  a  complete  barn  as  is  above  referred  to  cannot  be  built  at 
once,  the  possibility  of  building  it  at  a  future  day,  and  the  import- 
ance of  approaching  it  as  nearly  as  possible  at  the  outset,  should  be 
constantly  kept  in  view,  A  given  amount  of  space  can  be  more 
cheaply  inclosed  in  one  large  building,  than  in  several  small  ones, 
while  the  concentration  of  stock  and  food  under  one  roof,  the 
greater  ease  with  which  barn  work  may  be  done  in  a  conve- 
niently arranged   large   barn,  and  the  much   more  complete  super- 


FENCES    AND    FARM    BUILDINGS.  51 

vision  which  a  farmer  is   enabled  to  have   over  the  indoor  work  of 
his  assistants,  are  strong  arguments  in   favor  of  the  plan. 

Formerly,  when  hay  wagons  had  to  be  unloaded  entirely  by 
hand,  the  height  of  the  hay  bays  of  a  barn  had  to  be  regulated 
by  the  height  to  which  it  was  practicable  to  pitch  hay  ;  but  the 
rapidly  extending  use  of  the  horse  fork  or  elevator  has  done  away 
with  this  restriction.  Hay  can  now  be  easily  and  rapidly  raised 
to  any  height,  and  not  only  may  we  gain  the  extra  space  which  the 
greater  height  of  the  bay  gives,  but  a  considerably  gi  eater 
capacity  in  proportion  to  the  height,  which  comes  from  the  closer 
packing  at  the  bottom  of  a  high  bay. 

That  it  is  much  more  convenient,  easier,  and  cheaper  to  feed 
stock  in  the  building  in  which  all  of  the  hay  and  other  fodder  is 
stored,  every  farmer  knows  without  being  told.  How  much 
easier  it  is,  is  only  known  to  those  who  have  spent  their  lives  in 
foddering  cattle  in  sheds  and  yards  from  distant  hay  barns,  from 
which  every  forkful  of  hay  must  be  carried  in  bundles  or  on  a 
cart. 

Furthermore,  the  more  hay  has  to  be  carried  about  the  more 
it  is  wasted,  and  the  more  liable  it  is  to  be  injured  by  bad  weather, 
while  the  convenience  of  keeping  manure  is  in  exact  proportion 
to  the  concentration  of  the  stock,  under  the  most  favorable  cir- 
cumstances. 

I  have  recently  had  occasion  to  give  much  attention  to  this 
question  in  undertaking  the  improvement  of  a  worn-out  and 
"run-down"  farm  of  sixty  acres,*  on  which,  with  sufficient 
capital  at  command,  I  am  endeavoring  to  prove  that  good  farm- 
ing may  be  made  to  pay,  where  bad  farming  has  been  starved  out. 
My  aim  is  to  make  sixty  acres  of  land  which  would  not,  when  I 
took  it,  support  five  head  of  cattle,  furnish  all  the  food,  winter 
and  summer,  that  will  be  required  hy  fifty  head — except  meal  and 
grain  for  working  animals.  To  do  this,  I  need  the  best  sort  of 
a  barn,  with  every  convenience  for  storing  hay,  fodder,  and  roots, 
for  cutting  and    steaming    food,   for    sheltering    animals,    in    hot 

*  Ogden  Farm,  near  Newport,  R.  I. 


52  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

weather  and  in  cold,  for  keeping  all  manure  made,  under  cover, 
from  the  time  when  it  is  dropped  until  it  is  carted  on  to  the  land, 
and  for  "  soiling"  my  animals  in  summer. 

It  would  not  be  difficult  to  make  a  plan  of  a  barn  with  more 
various  capacities  and  more  conveniences  than  that  at  Ogden 
Farm  for  the  handling  of  grain,  etc.,  but  it  seems  to  be  desi-rable 
that  recommendations  for  the  construction  of  farm  buildings 
should  be  based  as  far  as  possible  on  the  personal  experience  of 
the  writer, — and  in  my  own  case  I  have  endeavored  to  combine 
everv  thing  that  is  really  essential  to  convenience  and  economy. 
I  have  prepared  drawings  of  this  barn  exactly  as  it  is  built,  and 
with  only  such  attachments  as  I  purpose  having  in  regular  use. 

This  is  in  no  respect  a  *'  fancy  "  building.  It  is  as  plain  as  a 
pike-staff,  as  all  farm  barns  should  be,  with  not  a  dollar  expend- 
ed anywhere  for  ornament,  and,  although  it  has  manv  of  the 
**  modern  conveniences,"  they  are  all  such  as  I  have  seen  in 
practical  and  profitable  use  elsewhere,  except  in  the  single  item 
of  the  railway  and  car  to  carry  the  feed  to  the  heads  of  the  stalls, 
which  is  a  cheap  arrangement  that  recommends  itself,  especially 
where  animals  are  to  be  ''  soiled," — that  is,  fed  on  green  fodder  in 
their  stalls  all  summer. 

The  first  problem  that  presented  itself  was  to  so  arrange  the 
barn  that  there  should  be  no  pitching  up  of  any  thing — that  the 
hay  should  be  hauled  in  wagons  on  to  the  top  floor  of  the  barn, 
and  there  stowed  awav  bv  horse-power;  thence  thrown  down  to 
the  feeding  floor  ;  and  the  manure  from  this  to  the  cellar; — or,  in 
summer,  that  the  corn  fodder  or  other  green  food  should  be 
dumped  from  a  cart  directly  into  the  car,  by  which  it  will  be 
taken  to  the  cattle. 

In  short,  I  wanted  a  side-hill  barn,  but  had  no  side-hill  to  build 
it  on,  the  land  sloping  only  two  feet  in  a  length  of  one  hundred 
feet. 

The  barn  stands  in  the  middle  of  an  old  apple-orchard,  about  two 
hundred  and  twentv  feet  wide  and  three  hundred  feet  long,  two 
rows  of  trees  being  left  all  around  the  space  occupied  by  the  barn. 
The  whole  is  surrounded,  except  at  the  entrance  end,  by  a  stone  wall 


FENCES    AND    FARM    BUILDINGS. 
Fig.  6. 


53 


£';a  wf\  \  ,  ^  M 


<     > 


54:  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

five  feet  high,  and  is  to  be  divided,  by  walls  of  the  same  height, 
into  four  yards,  communicating  bv  gateways.  Each  yard  contains 
about  one-third  of  an  acre,  and  is  to  be  used  as  an  exercising 
ground  for  one-fourth  of  the  stock.  The  arrangement  of  the 
yards  and   buildintis  is  shown  in  Fin.  6. 

The  arrangement  of  the  entrances  at  the  opposite  ends  by 
which  the  different  floors  are  reached  is  shown  in  Fig^  7,  which 
represents  a  sectional  view  through  the  barn  at  the  head  of  the; 
stalls  on  one  side.  A  perspective  view  is  shown  in  Fig.  8,  which 
shows  the  east  end  and  south  side  of  the  barn.  The  north  side  is 
exactly  the  same  as  the  south,  except  that  the  stone  foundation 
is  carried  up  to  the  level  of  the  top  floor  for  better  protection 
against  cold  north  winds.  Figs.  9,  9^,  and  12  show  the  arrange- 
ment of  the  cattle,  hav,  and  basement  floors. 

The  cellar  was  dug  out  seven  feet  deep  at  the  east  end  and  five 
feet  deep  at  the  west  end,  the  earth  excavated  being  mainly  de- 
posited back  of  the  abutment,  making  an  easily  graded  road,  strik- 
ing the  level  of  the  ground  about  two  hundred  feet  east  of  the 
barn.  The  descending  driveway,  by  which  the  cellar  is  entered 
from  the  west,  slopes  about  four  feet  in  a  distance  of  thirty  feet, 
the  steepest  grade  about  the  barn.  The  entire  basement  on  each 
side  of  the  gangway  is  for  the  storage  of  manure,  except  that  por- 
tion which  is  taken  off  by  the  root  cellar,  22  x  25  feet.  The  walls 
are  of  stone,  laid  in  lime  and  cement  mortar,  and  the  wall  about 
the  root  cellar  is  topped  out  with  brick,  fitted  closely  around  the 
floor  timbers. 

The  root  cellar  is  ventilated  by  a  window  on  the  south  side, 
which  is  also  used  for  shooting  in  the  roots.  The  gangway  is 
left  clear  for  wagons  to  be  taken  in  to  be  loaded  with  manure. 
The  arrangement  of  the  feeding  floor  is  tolerably  well  shown  in 
the  cut.  Its  only  peculiarities  are — (i)  A  railway  which  extends 
from  the  west  end,  the  entire  length  of  the  barn,  on  which  runs 
a  four-wheeled  truck,  holding  in  summer  a  rack  large  enough  to 
contain  a  horse  cart-load  of  green  fodder,  and  in  winter  a  large 
box  for  cut  and  steamed  food.  (2)  An  open-slatted  floor  occu- 
pying a  length  of  seven  feet  from  about  the  middle  of  the  line  of 


FENCES    AND    FARM.  BUILDINGS. 


55 


Fig.  7. 


56  II  A  N  D  V  -  B  0  0  K    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

Stalls  to'within  five  feet  of  the  outer  wall,  lliis  floor  is  made  of 
slats  six  inches  wide,  placed  one  and  a  half  inch  apart.  This 
arrangement  gives  light  to  the  basement  and  allows  all  of  the  urine 
to  run  through,  while  the  treading  of  the  cattle  presses  through 
most  of  the  dung,  the  remainder  of  which  is  thrown  through  small 
scuttle-holcs  near  the  outer  wall.  So  far  as  I  can  judge  from 
'over  a  year's  trial,  this  open  floor  is  excellent,  though,  had  the 
timbers  been  prepared  for  it,  it  would  have  been  better  to  have 
had  the  slats  run  lengthwise  of  the  barn,  as  in  that  case  they 
would  have  given  an  equally  good  footing  if  onlv  three  inches 
wide,  and  the  space  for  the  passage  of  manure  would  have  been 
doubled. 

It  is  intended  that  all  of  the  horned  cattle  should  feed  from  the 
level  on  which  they  stand.  Green  fodder,  or  long  hay,  being 
thrown  directly  on  the  floor  between  the  front  of  the  stalls  and  the 
elevated  border  of  the  railwav,  the  cut  feed  being  given  them  in 
tubs,  which  may  be  frequently  set  out  in  the  sun,  or,  like  the  long 
fodder,  being  placed  on  the  floor,  which,  as  it  is  free  from  obstruc- 
tions, can  be  swept  and  washed  out  at  pleasure.  The  cattle  are 
tied  by  the  neck.  Should  stanchions  be  preferred,  (and  it  is  an 
open  question  which  is  best,)  they  could  still  be  fed  in  the  same 
way. 

The  oxen  are  fed  from  mangers  inside  of  their  stalls,  so  that  the 
gangway  between  them  and  the  horses,  where  the  food  is  re- 
ceived from  the  upper  floor,  may  remain  unobstructed.  The 
two  loose  boxes  on  the  south  side  of  the  barn  are  of  equal  size, 
with  a  space  of  about  a  foot  and  a  half  above  the  partitions  for 
ventilation  and  for  the  lighting  of  the  inner  one,  which  has  no  win- 
dow. The  entire  floor  of  these  boxes  is  slatted  in  the  same  man- 
ner with  the  floor  under  the  hind  quarters  of  the  cattle.  A  rail 
from  the  di\isi()n  of  the  stalls  to  the  outer  wall,  at  the  center  of 
each  side  of  the  barn,  may  be  used  to  separate  the  cattle  of  each 
range  ot  stable  into  two  sections,  each  having  its  own  door  com- 
municating with  its  own  exercising  ground,  l^he  hay  floor,  which 
is  reached  by  a  very  easy  grade  over  the  embankment  and  bridge, 
has   no  center  posts.      The  space  from  the  floor  to  the  bottoms 


Fig.  8. — Perspective  View  of  Barn,  showing  the  east  and  south  sides. 


To  face  page  57. 


FENCES     AND    FARM    BUILDINGS.  57 

of  the  trusses  (eighteen  feet)  is  entirely  unobstructed,  save  by  the 
side  braces  of  the  three  center  frames,  which  were  necessary  to 
give  stiffness  to  the  building.  The  feed-roorn,  tool-room,  work- 
shop, and  chamber  are  independent  structures,  seven  and  a  half 
feet  high,  with  strongly  timbered  ceilings,  capable  of  holding  any 
weight  that  it  may  be  necessary  to  put  upon  them.  The  space 
above  the  workshop,  etc.,  will  be  used  for  storing  hay,  while  that 
over  the  feed-room  will  be  used  as  a  receptacle  for  cut  hay,  to  be 
taken  up  from  the  cutting  machine,  which  stands  on  the  main  floor 
west  of  the  feed-room,  by  an  elevator  similar  to  that  used  for  grain. 
The  capacity  of  the  hay  floor  will  be  about  one  hundred  and  twenty 
tons,  besides  ample  space  for  wagons.  The  trap-door  opposite  the 
door  of  the  chamber  corresponds  with  one  between  the  rail  tracks 
on  the  floor  below.  Through  these,  roots  are  hoisted  from  the  cel- 
lar to  the  upper  floor,  where  they  are  cut  by  a  root-slicer.  The 
steam-box,  grain  and  meal  bin,  etc.,  are  in  the  feed-room,  leaving 
sufficient  space  for  the  mixing  of  cut  food,  and  its  delivery  through 
the  trap-door  to  the  rail-car  below,  A  steam-boiler  and  a  small 
engine  for  driving  the  hay-cutter  will  be  erected  in  a  shed  north 
of  the  ox  stalls,  against  the  stone  wall  which,  as  already  stated, 
is,  on  this  side  of  the  barn,  carried  up  to  the  upper  floor.  Greater 
safety  against  fire  makes  this  arrangement  advisable.  The  reasons 
which  have  induced  me  to  adopt  this  method  of  preparing  winter 
food,  and  the  details  of  the  system  will  be  set  forth  in  the  chap- 
ter on  "  Feeding." 

One  winter's  experience  with  a  Prindle  steamer  and  a  horse- 
power hay-cutter  has  proven  both  the  advantage  of  this  mode  of 
preparing  food  and  the  necessity  for  better  means  for  cutting  a 
large  supply,  and  more  abundant  steam  for  cooking. 

A  self-regulatinj^  pumping  windmill  has  been  erected  over  a  spring 
one  thousand  feet  distant,  forcing  water  through  a  pipe  into  a  tank 
on  the  hay-floor,  communicating  with  iron  water-troughs,  one  in 
front  of  each  pair  of  cattle  stalls,  so  arranged  as  to  be  always  supplied 
with  water.  This  arrangement  for  supplying  water  has  now  been  in 
operation  for  nine  years,  and  it  is  in  all  respects  perfectly  satisfactory. 
The  windmill  is  entirely  self-regulating,  and  works  steadily  and  well 


58 


HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY, 


Fig.  lo. 


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FENCES    AND    FAR'ltf    BUILDINGS.  59 

in  all  winds,  having  passed  uninjured  through  some  of  the  most  severe 
storms  ever  known  on  this  coast.  A  windmill  of  larger  size — suffi- 
cient for  driving  a  small  grain-mill,  thrashing-machine,  feed-cutter, 
etc. — may  be  erected  on  the  top  of  a  barn. 

The  ventilation  of  the  barn  is  by  means  of  a  simple  covered  open- 
ing, in  the  centre  of  the  peak  for  the  hay-floor,  and  two  more  active 
ventilators,  one  at  each  end,  communicating  through  wooden  fun- 
nels, following  the  slope  of  the  roof  on  each  side,  and  descending 
through  the  hay-floor  and  the  cattle-floor  to  the  cellar.  The  manure 
cellar  being  entirely  closed  from  the  outer  air,  the  ventilating  pipes 
can  be  supplied  only  by  drawing  down  the  foul  air  of  the  cattle- 
room,  through  the  slatted  floor.  I  append  herewith  the  specifica- 
tions for  the  carpenter  work,  which  includes  the  sizes  of  the  tim- 
bers. 

"  All  the  materials  for  this  building  will  be  furnished  by  the 
"  owner,  and  the  contractor  is  to  put  them  together  in  the  most 
"  thorough  and  workmanlike  manner.  The  work  of  framing,  rais- 
''  ing,  and  covering,  including  shingling  sides  and  roof,  to  be  com- 
"  pleted  in  thirty  days  from  the  time  that  the  foundation  walls  are 
"  ready  for  the  sills. 

"  On  the  north  side  of  building  and  wing  the  foundation  wall  will 
*■*■  be  carried  up  to  height  of  under  side  of  second  story  floor.  On 
"  the  south  and  ends  the  wall  will  be  carried  up  one  foot  above  the 
"  grade  level,  and  on  these  there  will  be  an  8  x  8  sill,  the  ends 
"  to  be  carried  up  to  and  built  into  north  wall. 

"  The  summer-breasts  in  this  floor  will  be  tenoned  into  the  sill 
"  on  the  south,  and  the  north  ends  will  rest  on  an  1 8-inch  buttress. 
"  Each  summer-breast  will  be  supported  on  two  piers,  as  shown  on 
"  plan,  and  will  be  pinned  to  the  sill.  All  these  sticks  will  be 
"  6x8,  placed  edgewise. 

"  On  the  first  floor  and  over  piers  there  will  be  6x8  sup- 
"  ports  under  two-inch  flooring. 

"  Corner  posts  6x8,  other  posts  6x6,  and  one  at  every  bay. 

"  The  girt  will  be  6  x  8  placed  edgewise,  and  the  beams  of 
"  second  story  floor  will  be  framed  the  same  as  those  of  first 
"  floor. 


60 


HANDY- BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY 


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Fig.  II. — Barn  at  Ogden  Farm — Cross-Section. 

a  a.  Cattle  Stalls. 

A.   Hay-room  (capacity  of  no  tons). 
I.  Feed  room  in  one  corner  of  hay-room. 
d.  Passage  between  cattle. 
I  t  t.  Manure  cellar — one  end  of  the  right-hand  space  being  walled  off  for  roots. 
g.  Water  tank. 
h.  Tool-room,  etc.,  in  one  corner  of  hay -room. 


PEXCES    AND    FARM    BUILDIXGS.  CI 

"  The  girt  on  the  north  will  rest  on  the  wall,  and  will  form  the 
''  sill  on  that  side. 

"  The  plates  will  be  6  x  6. 

''  All  the  posts  will  be  framed  as  shown  in  framing  plans,  and  the 
"  braces  4x6  will  be  tenoned  and  pinned  in  a  thorough  manner. 

*'  The  studs  2x6,  and  there  will  be  six  in  each  bay.  Those 
"  in  the  ends  and  in  the  lean-to  will  be  spaced  out  in  the  same 
"  manner.     All  outer  studs  will  be  properly  framed. 

*'  The  trusses  will  be  framed  as  shown  on  section.  The  tie- 
"  beams  will  be  9  x  6,  made  of  three  thicknesses  bolted  together. 
*'  The  principals  and  straining  pieces  will  be  6x8.  The  tie- 
"  beam  will  be  notched  down  to  the  plate  and  will  be  kept  in 
*'  place  by  means  of  an  iron  strap,  secured  on  each  side  to  the  post 
"  below  the  plate.  The  principals  and  tie-beams  will  be  strapped 
"  together,  as  shown  on  section,  and  the  tie-beam,  to  crown  not 
"  less  than  2  inches,  will  be  supported  by  means  of  Iron  rods,  nuts, 
*'  and  washers,  as  shown  on  section. 

"  Purlins  6x6,  and  to  be  notched  in  jack-rafters,  also  to  be 
"  notched  in,  to  be  2  x  8.  There  will  be  34  pairs  on  the  main 
"  roof.  Rafters  for  lean-to  will  be  of  same  size,  and  will  be  spaced 
**  in  the  same  manner.     They  will  also  have  braces  or  collar  beams. 

**  The  ridge  board  will  be  2  X  lO. 

"  On  the  west  end  of  main  building  to  give  the  necessary 
"  amount  of  strength  to  carry  the  load,  frame  a  truss  above  the 
"  girt  on  each  side,  making  the  girt  the  tie-beam,  and  put  in  6x8 
"  principals.  Frame  the  whole  together  properly,  strap  the  princi- 
"  pals  to  the  girt,  and  put  a  suspension  rod  with  nuts  and  washers 
"  into  each  truss. 

*'  Cover  exterior  of  building,  roof  included,  with  hemlock 
"  boards,  set  window  and  door  frames,  and  shingle  the  whole  build- 
"  ing,  lean-to  included. 

*'  The  rafters  will  project  18  inches  beyond  the  line  of  the  build- 
"  ing,  and  the  boarding  will  run  up  by  the  rafters  till  it  meets  the 
*'  roof  boardino;. 

o 

*'  All  floor  joist  will  be  2X  12  and  16  inches  apart  from  cen- 
''  ters.      Headers  and  trimmers  for  hatchways  3x12. 


C2 


II  ANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY 


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FENCES    AXD    FARM    BUILDINGS.  63 

''  Make  first  floor  gangway,  front  half  of  cow  stalls,  five  feet 
*'  out  from  the  side  walls,  and  floor  of  horse  stable  of  2-inch  plank 
"  matched  with  splines.  Cover  the  rest  of  first  floor  with  2x3 
"  joist  one  inch  apart  and  spiked  down. 

*'  In  the  stable  floor  and  back  of  the  horses  there  will  be  a  gutter 
"  with  a  pitch  to  the  west,  to  take  the  water  to  the  manure  pit. 

"  Cover  second  story  floor  with  2-inch  plank,  matched  with 
*'  splines  and  spiked  to  floor  beams.  The  flooring  to  be  notched 
"  for  posts  and  studs,  and  to  fit  up  close  to  outer  boarding. 

"  All  the  windows  are  to  have  plain  cases.  They  will  be  glazed 
"  with  ordinary  8x10  glass.  Besides  the  number  of  windows 
*'  shown  in  the  plan  there  will  be  one  of  the  same  size  in  each  peak. 

"  All  doors  not  otherwise  described  will  be  hung  with  rollers  at 
'■'■  the  top,  and  the  frames  of  sliding  doors  will  be  of  2-inch  plank. 

*'  Fit  up  the  horse  stables  with  permanent  partitions  the  whole 
*'  height  of  the  story,  making  the  stall  divisions  of  the  usual  height. 
''  Close  the  mangers  up  at  the  bottom  and  in  front  up  to  the  ceil- 
"  ing.  In  the  center  there  will  be  an  opening,  horse-collar  shape, 
"  with  a  cast-iron  rim,  and  the  bottom  of  mangers  will  be  covered 
*'  with  sheet  zinc. 

"  From  gangway  on  second  floor  there  will  be  covered  openings 
"  to  let  down  feed  into  the  mangers. 

"  Opposite  the  horse  stable  there  will  be  an  ox  stable  as  shown 
"  on  plan,  fitted  with  a  permanent  partition,  and  to  have  openings 
*^'  on  gangway  for  feeding. 

"  On  the  second  floor  there  will  be  permanent  partitions  set  and 
"  ceiled  on  one  side  and  overhead  with  |-inch  matched  spruce. 
"  The  doors  will  all  be  battened,  and  that  to  the  chamber  will  have 
"  a  lock  and  catch. 

"  The  hatches  on  both  floors  will  be  hung  on  hinges  and  will 
*'  each  have  a  ring  and  staple  flushed  in. 

"  Over  the  hatches  there  will  be  an  eye  secured  to  the  ridge- 
"  board  for  a  fall. 

"  There  will   be  a   bridge  to  floor  of  second  story,  made  of 
"8x8     chestnut     sleepers,    and     covered    with     3-inch     plank. 
"  On   each   side   of  main   building   there  will   be   eave  troughs, 
5 


64  II  AND  Y -BOOK    OF    II  USB  AN  DRY. 

"with  a  pitch  from  the  center  to  the  two  ends,  and  wooden 
"  spouts  to  take  off  the  water  from  the  roof,  also  at  end  of  lean-to. 
"  All  the  outside  doors  have  platforms  in  front  as  shown  in  ele- 
*'  vations." 

For  poultry,  animals  sick  with  contagious  diseases,  and  such 
uses,  small  inexpensive  buildings  have  been  erected  in  the  yard, 
as  remote  as  possible  from  the  barn.  The  swine  are  kept 
entirely  in  the  manure  cellar,  being  fed  through  a  shoot  from 
the  feeding  floor. 

The  entire  cost  of  this  barn,  including  the  digging  of  the  cellar, 
materials  and  labor,  and  a  liberal  estimate  for  the  cost  of  steam 
and  water-works,  and  a  horse  hav-fork,  will  not  exceed  $7,500,  or 
a  yearly  cost  for  interest,  repairs,  and  insurance,  of  ^^700.  It  would 
be  difficult  to  estimate  in  figures  the  yearly  value  of  such  a  barn; 
but  the  perfect  protection  of  all  manure  made,  the  sheltering  of 
fifty  animals  and  of  all  the  implements  and  vehicles  required  on 
the  farm,  the  saving  of  the  labor  of  watering  stock,  the  great 
economy  of  such  convenient  feeding  arrangements,  the  ability  of 
two  men  to  cut  a  week's  supply  of  fodder  in  two  hours  by  the  aid 
of  a  steam-engine,  the  storage  of  120  tons  of  hay,  and  the  reduc- 
tion of  the  labor  of  "soiling"  to  its  very  lowest  point,  must  be 
worth  far  more  than  $700  a  year. 

The  increased  value  of  the  manure  alone,  over  that  which  lies 
in  an  open  barn-yard  exposed  to  rain  and  sun,  to  "  drenching  and 
bleaching,"  would  go  far  toward  making  up  the  amount,  which 
is  only  $14  per  annum  for  each  animal  accommodated. 

The  barn  is  somewhat  more  expensive  in  the  item  of  doors  an- 
windows  than  it  would  need  to  be  if  soiling  were  not  intended. 
For  this,  it  is  important  to  secure  the  most  perfect  ventilation  in 
warm  weather,  which  is  accomplished  in  the  case  in  question  by 
the  use  of  six  doors,  five  feet  wide,  one  door  ten  feet  wide,  ten 
single  windows,  and  one  double  one,  and  by  very  thorough  ventila- 
tion from  above. 

The  doors  are  all  hung  from  the  top  on  iron  rails,  and  the  single 
ones  close  against  stout  jambs. 


FENCES    AND    FARM    BUILDINGS. 


65 


Of  one  thing  I  am  very  sure;  many  a  farmer  in  this  country 
lias  detached  barns  and  sheds  which  could  not  now  be  built  for 
$10,000,  yet  which,  from  their  small  size  and  disconnected  location, 
have  much  less  capacity  than  the  barn  at  Ogden  Farm,  and  offer 
few  of  its  conveniences,  while  they  include  no  provision  for  the 
care  of  manure. 

A  very  good  plan  for  a  small  barn,  "  for  a  farm  of  fifty  acres  or 
less,"  is  given  in  Thomas's  Register  of  Rural  Affairs,  vol.  iii.,  p. 
129,  which  is  here  given  with  his  own  description  : — 

"•The  plan  here  given  is  sufficient  for  a  farm  containing  fifty 
"acres  under  cultivation,  and  yielding  good  crops,  with  general 
"or  mixed  husbandry.  For  special  departments  of  farming,  it 
"  must  be  modified  to  apply  to  circumstances. 

"Fig.  14  is  apian  of  the  principal  floor.  Being  built  on  a 
*'  moderately  descending  side-hill,  the  thrashing  floor  is  easily 
"accessible  through  the  wide  doors  on  the  further  side,  and  the 

Fig.  13. — Perspective  View. 


*'  wagon,  when  unloaded,  is  backed  out.  These  doors  should 
"  be  each  at  least  five  feet  wide,  so  as  to  give  an  opening  of  ten 
"feet;  and  about  twelve  feet  high,  to  allow  ample  space  to 
"  drive  in  a  load  of  hay.  The  door  at  the  other  end  of  the 
*'  floor  is  about  five  feet  wide,  and  is  used  for  throwing  out 
"  straw.  A  narrow  window  on  each  side  of  this  door,  and  one 
"  with  a  row  of  single  horizontal  lights  over  the  large  doors, 
"  keep  the  floor  well  lighted,  when  stormy  weather  requires  the 
"  doors  to  be  shut. 


66 


HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBAXDRY. 


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"  The  bav,  on  the  right,  will  hold  at  least  one  ton  of  hay  for 
II  c\  erv  foot  of  height,  or  some  20  or  25  in 
'■'■  all.  Bv  marking  the  feet  on  one  of  the 
"  front  posts,  the  owner  may  know,  at  any 
"  time,  with  some  degree  of  accuracy,  how 
"  many  tons  of  hay  he  has  in  this  bay, 
"  after   it  has  become  well   settled.      The 

Fig.  M.-Princip.i  Floor.       ^^  uprjght  shaft,  V,  servcs  at  the  same  time 

A.  A    trap    door,    (or    throwing  ,,  .,  ,  i  i  i      i  i      r 

down  manure.  ^o  vcntilatc   the   stablcs  below,   and    tor 

B.  Closet   for   harness,  "<"!«."  throwing  down   havdircctlv   in   front  of 

bulfalo  skins,  etc.  V         i  i  i    i  i  r 

c.  Toolroom.  "the  COW  stablcs.      It  should  be  made  of 

E.  Trap-door  for  straw  and  roots,  cc  pia^^ J  boards   insidc,  that   the   hav    may 

F.  Ladder  to  bay.  ^  . 

V.  Ventilator  and  hay  shoot.       "fall    frcelv,  and    for   the  same  reason  it 
s.  Stairs  to  asement.  "  should  bc  slightlv  larger  downward.      It 

"  should  have  a  succession  of  board  doors  two  feet  or  more 
"  square,  hung  on  hinges  so  as  to  open  downward,  through  the 
"openings  of  which  the  hay  is  thrown  down  for  the  animals. 
"  When  not  in  use,  these  doors  should  be  shut  by  turning 
"  upward  and  buttoning  fast.  A  register  should  be  placed  in 
"this  shaft,  to  regulate  the  amount  of  air  in  severe  weather. 
"  This  may  be  a  horizontal  door  at  the  bottom,  dropping  open  on 
"  hinges,  and  shut  by  hooking  up  closely  or  partially,  on  different 
*'  pins. 

"  Fig.  15  shows  the  form  of  the  ventilator  at  the  top  of  the  build- 
Fig.  15.  "  ing.       It     is     made     of 
"  wood,   except    the    four 
"  iron  rods  or  bolts  at  the 
"  corners,  and  secures  the 
"  advantages     of     Emer- 
"  son's       excellent      cap, 
"which  causes  the  air  to  draw  upward  at  all  times  when    there 
"is  wind   from  any  quarter.      Fig.    16  is  a  section  showing  the 
"  interior. 

"A   fixed  ladder,  on   the  line  between    the    bay  and   the  floor, 
"enables  the  attendant  to  ascend  readily  at  any  moment. 

"As  a  basement  is  usually  too  damp  for  horses,  a  stable  large 


Fig.    16. 


FENCES    AND    FARM    BUILDINGS.  67 

"  enouo-h  to  hold  five  is  placed  on  this  floor.  The  middle  stall 
"  will  receive  two  horses  to  stand  abreast  ;  and  being  placed 
"  opposite  to  the  door  six  feet  wide,  will  readily  admit  a  span  in 
"  harness,  for  temporary  feeding,  which  is  often  a  great  conve- 
"  nience.  A  narrow  passage  from  this  stall  admits  the  attendant  to 
'■'■  the  barn  floor.  A  trap-door  at  A  allows  the  cleanings  of  the 
"  stable  to  pass  at  once  to  the  manure  heap  below. 

"  These  stalls  are  represented  as  only  four  feet  wide,  f'ive 
"  feet  would  probably  be  better,  making  but  one  narrow  stall  on 
"  each  side  the  wide  one,  and  allowing  room  for  four  horses  in  all. 
"  A  door  under  the  girth,  at  E,  allows  straw  and  roots  to  be  dis- 
"  charged  into  the  root  cellar  below — the  roots  being  first  depos- 
"  ited  there,  and  then  a  few  feet  of  straw  upon  them,  protects 
"  from  freezing." 

"  The  Granary^  8  by  13  feet,  contains  three  bins  which  have 
"  a  part  of  the  front  boards  movable  or  shding,  so  that  when  all 
"  are  in  their  place,  they  may  be  filled  six  feet  high.  They  will 
"  hold,  in  all,  about  350  bushels.  The  contents  of  each  bin  may 
"  be  readily  determined  by  me-asuring  and  multiplying  the  length, 
"breadth,  and  depth,  and  dividing  the  number  of  cubic  feet  thus 
"  obtained  by  56,  and  multiplying  by  45.  The  result  will  be 
*'  bushels.  It  will,  therefore,  be  most  convenient  to  make  each 
"  bin  even  feet.  A  scale  should  be  marked  inside,  showing  the 
"  number  of  bushels  at  any  height.  Bags  may  be  marked  in  the 
"  same  way,  after  trial,  with  considerable  accuracy,  and  save 
"  much  trouble  in  measuring,  for  many  purposes,  but  not  for 
"  buying  and  selling.  A  short  tube,  with  a  slide  to  shut  it,  may 
"  pass  downward  from  one  or  more  of  these  bins,  so  that  bags 
"  placed  in  a  wagon  in  the  shed  below,  may  be  easily  and  rapidly 
"  filled. 

"  A  bay  for  unthrashed  grain  occupies  all  the  space  over  the 
"  horse  stable,  tool  room,  and  granary  ;  and  movable  poles  or 
"platform  over  each  end  of  the  floor  also  admit  a  considerable 
^'  quantity  besides. 

"  The  basement^  (Fig.  17.)  This  needs  but  little  explanation. 
"  The  cows  are  fed  from  the  passage  in  front  of  them,  into  which 


G8 


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*' the  hav-shoot  discharges,  in   front   of  which  a  door   opens  to 
Fig.  ,7.-Bascmcnt.  "  ^hc  shcd,   for   the  rcadv   feeding  of  an- 

*■'■  imals  outside.  The  two  inner  stalls 
"  shut  with  gates,  and  serve  for  calf-pens 
"  when  needed.  Coarse  implements,  as 
"  sleds  in  summer,  and  wagons  and  carts 
"  in  winter,  may  occupy  the  inclosed  space 
"r.djoining,  entered  by  a  common  gate." 

For  the  very  comprehensive  requirements  of  a  farm  devoted 
to  ''mixed  husbandry," — when  live  stock,  fruit,  grain,  etc.,  are 
each  to  receive  their  share  of  attention, — I  have  seen  no  plan 
for  building  a  barn  and  sheds  that  seems  so  complete  as  that 
prepared  by  Dr.  Hexamer  for  the  Agricultural  Annual  of  1867, 
and  which  he  describes  as  follows: — 

*'  Explanation  of  Ground  Plan.  —  The  Alain  Buddings 
"50x80  feet,  exclusive  of  the  approach,  contains  ist.  The 
*'  Cook-room  for  boiling  or  steaming  and  preparing  feed,  which  is  also 
*' a  convenient  place  for  butchering  in  winter;  <?,  <?,  are  boxes, 
"  with  inclined  floors,  for  mixing  cut  feed  ;  f,  r,  c,  r,  are  grain 
*'  boxes,  connected  by  shoots  with  the  granary  on  the  floor  above, 
"  (see  Fig.  20,)  and  capable  of  holding  a  week's  supply  of  meal  :  r.d 
*' grain  -,  b  \s  z  water-tank  with  penstock,  or  a  cistern  and  pump  ; 
"  ^  is  a  caldron  •,  ^,  a  hydrant  for  filling  it;  f^  the  chimney  ;  ^,  g^ 
"  stairs  to  second  story.  2d.  The  Root-cellar^  which  is  divided 
"  into  four  bins  filled  through  trap-doors  from  the  floor  above  ; 
" />,  />,  are  ventilators  running  to  the  roof;  next  this  is  the  The 
"  Fruit-cellar^  and  beyond  this  /,  the  cider  press  ;  /f,  place  for 
"  coopering,  cleaning  barrels,  etc.  ;  w,  a  vault  under  the  approach 
"  to  the  third  floor,  intended  for  an  ice-house,  but  which  may  be 
"  used  as  a  cellar,  or  very  well  as  an  engine-house,  detached  from 
*"•  the  barn  and  made  fire-proof;  /,  cool  cellar  for  hanging  meats; 
"  n,  w,  ;/,  w,  descending  planes  from  second  story  ;  0,  0,  ascend- 
"  ing  planes  from  cellar. 


FENCES     AND    FARM    BUILDINGS. 


69 


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70 


HANDV-BOOK    OF    UUSBANDRY. 


Pig.  19. — The  Ground  Plan. 


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FENCES    AND    FARM    BUILDINGS. 


71 


"  The  West  Wing  is  21  x  lOO  feet.  The  feeding  alley  6  reet 
"  wide.  There  are  windows  on  the  north  side.  The  horse- 
*'  stalls  are  5  feet  wide  and  9  feet  long,  exclusive  of  mangers, 
**  which  are  2  feet  wide.  The  loose  boxes,  for  calf-pens,  calving 
"  stalls,  etc.,  are  7 i  X  9  feet.  The  passage  behind  the  stalls  is  4 
*'  feet  wide  j  p  is  a  double  stall  for  a  harnessed  span,  or  for  use  as 
"  a  large  loose  box.  The  manure  pit  is  8  feet  wide  and  3  feet 
"  deep  ;  and  y  is  a  privy. 

"  The  East  Wing^  for  cows  and  oxen, is  19  x  lOO  feet  ;  feeding 
"alley  6    feet.     The   platform   for  cows   is  arranged  for  twenty 

Fig.  20. — Second  Floor. 


\ 


^^ 


1 


icr. 


-r  -TtSfc 


i« 


"  stalls,  3|-  feet  wide;  mangers,  2%  feet  wide.  The  inclined 
"  platform,  from  rear  of  manger  to  the  manure  gutter,  5  feet  ; 
"and  the  cemented  manure  gutters  are  18  inches  wide  and  4 
"  inches  deep.  These  gutters  are  on  an  incline,  and  discharge 
"every  15  feet  into  the  manure  pit.  The  ox-stalls  are  8  feet 
"  wide  for  each  yoke.  Bull  stall,  5  feet  wide.  The  platforms  for 
"  oxen  and  bull  are  six  feet  long,  exclusive  of  manger ;  r,  r, 
"  mark  descending  ways  for  carts  to  back  down  into  the  manure 
"  pit,  which  is  bridged  at  (5)  for  the  oxen  to  pass. 


72 


HANDY-BOOK    OF    nUS13ANDRY. 


"  The  Piggery  and  Fowl-bouse  is  25  x  50  feet,  and  opens  directly 
*'  into  the  jards  ;  /,  /,  /,  /,  hog  pens,  lOX  10  feet  ;  z/,  m,  «,  «, 
"  yards  ;  v^  ^',  feeding  alleys  ;  IV  is  the  main  fowl  room,  with 
"  roosts  ;  x^  laying  room,  separated  from  the  roosting  room  by  a 
*'  movable  partition.  The  nest-boxes  are  so  arranged  along  the 
*'  north  side,  that  any  one  can  be  pushed  into  the  hatching  room 
*'(_)»)  without  disturbing  the  hen;  z  is  the  room  for  fattening 
*'  fowls  in  the  autumn,  or  for  any  convenient  purpose  when  not  so 
*■*■  used. 

*'  Manure  Sheds. — The  wash  of  the  Barn-yard  runs  in  the 
*'  direction  of  the  arrows  into  the  liquid  manure  cistern  (y/)  from 
*■*■  whence  it  can  be  pumped  over  the  compost  heaps,  5,  5,  B^  B. 
"The  leaders  from  the  barn  roofs  do  not  discharge  into  this 
"  cistern,  but  may  be  turned  into  the  manure  pits,  when  the 
*'  manure  gets  too  dry.  The  sheds  are  for  carts,  wagons,  plows, 
"  etc.,  also  for  absorbents  and  materials  for  composting  to  be  used 
"  with  the  manure. 

"  Explanation  of  Second  Floor  Plan. — ^,  <?,  ^,  <?,  as- 
*' cending  roads;  />,  carriage  floor;  f,  tool-room  ;  d^  workshop; 
"  e^  harness  room  for  carriage  harness,  farm  harness  is  kept  in  the 
"  stables  behind  the  horses  ;  f^  place  for  horse-power  ;  g^  g^  g^  g., 
"trap-doors  to  cellars  ;  /;,  cool  room  ;  /',  ice-house  ;  ^,  -f,  ^,  bins 
"  in  granary  ;  «,  stairs  to  upper  floor  ;  0,(7,  stairs  from  lower  floor  ; 
"/,  /,  feed  shoots  to  grain  boxes,  (0,  in  Fig.  19  ;)  w,  sleeping  room 

Fig.  2r. — "^Ttinn  nf  Main  Barn. 


*'  for  a  man  ;  if  not  wanted  as  such  it  may  be  added  to  the 
*' granary.  The  dotted  line  />,  is  a  horizontal  shaft,  fixed  close  to 
*■'■  the  ceiling,  and  moved  by  steam  or  by  horse-power.  This 
"works  all  the  machinery  used  in  the  barn,  the  belts  running  to 
"  the   cellar  below,  and   to    the   thrashing   floor  above  ;  y,  place 


FENCES    AXD    FARM    BUILDIXGS. 


73 


"  for  cider  mill  over  the  cider  press  ;  r,  chimnev  ;   s^  5,  hav-shoots 
"from    above;   /,  f,  t,   t,   trap-doors   for        Fig.  22-?ection  of  wing. 
"  bedding  ;    ?/,    «,    u^    ?/,    trap-doors    for 
"  hav,   stalks,    and    other    fodder.      The 
"  corn  floor  may  be  over  one  of  the  lofts. 

Dr.  H.  also  recounts,  as  follows,  "the 
conditions   of  a  good  barn,"  etc. : — 

"  I.   There   should   be    one   head,   and    --  -,     .  ^ ^^-^ 

*'  he    should    be    able    to    control    com- 

"  pletely   everybody   and    every    thing    in    the    whole   barn.      To 

"obtain    this,     'Centralization'    and     one     general    system     are 

"  necessary.      Without  this  no  man  can  farm  with   profit,  and  no 

"  barn   plan  is  good  which  is  incompatible  with  a   high  degree  of 

"both. 

"  2.  Arrangements  for  saving  labor  as  much  as  possible,  in 
"  taking  care  of  stock  and  other  work.  The  easiest  way  should, 
"  when  possible,  be  the  right  way. 

"  3.    Security  for  fodder,  grain,  roots,  fruit,  and  all  crops. 

"  4.    Facilities  for  protecting,  and  means  of  making  manure. 

"  5.    Provision  for  the  comfort  and  health  of  animals. 
"  a.    Full  and  direct  light  in  the  stables. 
"  b.    Ventilation  of  stables,  cellars,  and  loft. 
"  c.   Southerly  exposure  of  yards. 

*'  6.   Shelter  for  all  tools  and  implements. 

"  7.   Provision  for  work  on  rainy  and  cold  days." 

Mr.  Thomas,  in  the  Register  of  Rural  Affairs,  quoted  above, 
gives  the  following  very  useful  hints  to  those  who  are  about 
buildino-  barns  : — 


"  ESTIMATING    THE   CAPACITY   OF   BARNS. 

"  Very  few  farmers  are  aware  of  the  precise  amount  of  shelter 
"  needed  for  their  crops,  but  lay  their  plans  of  out-buildings  from 
"  vague  conjecture  or  guessing.  As  a  consequence,  much  of 
"their  products  have  to  be  stacked  outside,  after  their  buildings 
"  have  been  completed  ;  and  if  additions  are  made,  they  must  of 
*' necessity  be  put  up  at  the  expense  of  convenient  arrangement. 


74  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

**  A  brief  example  will  show  how  the  capacity  of  the  barn  may 
**  be  accurately  adapted  to  the  size  of  the  farm. 

*■*■  Suppose,  for  example,  that  the  farm  contains  one  hundred 
**  acres,  of  which  ninety  are  good  arable  land;  and  that  one- 
'*  third  each  are  deyoted  to  meadow,  pasture,  and  grain.  Ten 
"  acres  of  the  latter  may  be  corn,  stored  in  a  separate  building. 
"  The  meadow  should  afford  two  tons  per  acre,  and  yield  sixty 
*'tons  ;  the  sown  grain,  20  acres,  may  yield  a  corresponding  bulk 
**  of  straw,  or  forty  tons.  The  barn  should,  therefore,  besides 
**  other  matters,  haye  a  capacity  for  one  hundred  tons,  or  oyer 
*'  one  ton  per  acre  as  an  ayerage.  Allowing  500  cubic  feet  for 
'*  each  ton  (perhaps  600  would  be  nearer)  it  would  require  a  bay 
*'  or  mow  40  feet  long  and  19  feet  wide  for  a  ton  and  a  half  to 
"  each  foot  of  depth.  If  twenty  feet  high,  it  would  hold  about 
*'  thirty  tons.  If  the  barn  were  forty  feet  wide,  with  eighteen 
**  feet  posts,  and  eight  feet  of  basement,  about  forty-five  tons 
*'  could  be  stowed  away  in  a  bay  reaching  from  basement  to  peak. 
'*  Two  such  bays,  or  equi\  alent  space,  would  be  required  for  the 
*'  products  of  ninety  well-culti\  ated  acres.  Such  a  building  is 
*'  much  larger  than  is  usually  allowed  ;  and  yet  without  it  there 
**  must  be  a  large  waste,  as  every  farmer  is  aware  who  stacks  his 
**  hay  out  ;  or  a  large  expenditure  of  labor  in  pitching  and  re- 
"  pitching  sheaves  of  grain  in  thrashing. 

"  In  addition  to  this,  as  we  have  already  seen,  there  should  be 
*'  ample  room  for  the  shelter  of  domestic  animals.  In  estimat- 
*'  ing  the  space  required,  including  feeding  alleys,  etc.,  a  horse 
''  should  have  75  square  feet  ;  a  cow  45  feet  ;  and  sheep  about 
*'  10  square  feet  each.  The  basement  of  a  barn,  therefore,  40 
''  by  75  feet  in  the  clear,  will  stable  30  cattle  and  150  sheep,  and 
**a  row  of  stalls  across  one  end  will  afford  room  for  eight  horses. 
*'  The  thirty  acres  each  of  pasture  and  meadow,  and  the  ten 
"  acres  of  corn-fodder,  already  spoken  of,  with  a  portion  of  crrain 
"  and  roots,  would  probably  keep  about  this  number  of  animals, 
"  and  consequently  a  barn  with  a  basement  of  less  size  than  40 
*'  by  75  would  be  insufficient  for  the  complete  accommodation  of 
*' such  a  farm  in  the  highest  state  of  cultivation. 


FENCES    AND    FARM    BUILDINGS.  75 

"  FORM    OF    BARN    BUILDINGS. 

*'  It  has  formerly  been  a  practice,  highly  commended  by 
"  writers,  and  adopted  by  farmers,- to  erect  a  series  of  small  build- 
''  ing s  in  the  form  of  a  hollow  square,  affording  an  open  space 
"  within  this  range,  sheltered  from  severe  winds.  But  later  ex- 
'*  perience,  corroborated  bv  reason,  indicates  the  superiority  of  a 
"  single  large  building.  There  is  more  economy  in  the  materials 
"  for  walls  ;  more  in  the  construction  of  roofs — a  most  expen- 
"  sive  portion  of  farm  structures  ;  and  a  saving  in  the  amount  of 
"  labor,  in  feeding,  thrashing,  and  transferring  straw  and  grain, 
"  when  all  are  placed  more  compactly  together.  The  best  barns 
"  are  those  with  three  stories  ;  and  nearly  three  times  as  much 
"  accommodation  is  obtained  thus  under  a  single  roof,  as  with  the 
"  old  mode  of  erecting  only  low  and  small  buildings. 

"  An  important  object  is  to  avoid  needless  labor  in  the  trans- 
"  fer  of  the  many  tons  of  farm  products  which  occupy  a  barn. 
"  This  object  is  better  secured  by  a  three-story  barn  than  by  any 
"  other,  where  a  side-hill  will  admit  of  its  erection.  The  hay 
"  and  grain  are  drawn  directly  to  the  upper  floor,  and  nearly  all 
"  is  pitched  downward.  If  properly  arranged,  the  grain  is  all 
"  thrashed  on  this  floor,  and  both  grain  and  straw  go  downward 
"  — the  straw  to  a  stack  or  bay,  and  the  grain  through  an  opening 
"  into  the  granary  below.  Hay  is  thrown  down  through  shoots 
"  made  for  this  purpose  to  the  animals  below,  and  oats  are  drawn 
"  ofF  through  a  tube  to  the  horses'  manger.  The  cleanings  of 
"  the  horse  stables  are  cast  through  a  trap-door  into  the  manure 
"  heap  in  the  basement.  These  are  the  principal  objects  gained 
"  by  such  an  arrangement  ;  and  as  the  labor  of  attendance  must 
"  be  repeated  perpetually,  it  is  very  plain  how  great  the  saving 
"  must  be  over  barns  with  only  one  floor,  where  hay,  grain^ 
"  manure,  etc.,  have  to  be  carried  many  feet  horizontally,  or 
^'  thrown  upward. 

"  HOW  TO    PLAN    A    BARN. 

"  The  first  thing  the  farmer  should  do  who  is  about  to  erect  a 
"  barn,    is    to    ascertain    what    accommodation    he  wants.     To 


76  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"  determine  the  amount  of  space,  has  already  been  pointed  out. 
"  He  should  next  make  a  list  of  the  different  apartments  required, 
"  which  he  may  select  from  the  following,  comprising  most  of 
*'  the  objects  usually  sought  : — 

I.  Bay  or  mow  for  hay.  8.    Root  cellar. 

a.  Bay  or  mow  for  unthrashed  grain.  9.   Rojm  for  heavy  tools  and  wagons. 

3.  Bjy  or  mow  for  straw.  10.   Manure  sheds. 

4.  Thrashing  floor.  11.   Granary-. 

5.  Stjblcs  for  h JKCS.  I  a.    Harness  room. 

6.  Stables  for  cattle,  and  calf  pens.  13.   Cisterns  for  rain  water. 

7.  Shelter  for  sheep.  14.  Space  for  horse-power. 

"  If  these  are  placed  all  on  one  level,  care  should  be  taken 
"  that  those  parts  oftenest  used  should  be  nearest  of  access  to 
"  each  other  ;  and  that  arrangements  be  made  for  drawing  with 
"  a  cart  or  wagon  in  removing  or  depositing  all  heavv  substances, 
'^  as  hav,  grain,  and  manure.  In  filling  the  barn,  for  example, 
"  the  wagon  should  go  to  the  very  spot  where  it  is  unloaded  ;  the 
"  cart  should  pass  in  the  rear  of  all  stalls  to  carry  off  manure  ; 
'*  and  if  many  animals  are  fed  in  stables,  the  hay  should  be  carted 
*'  to  the  mangers,  instead  of  doing  all  these  labors  by  hand. 

"  If  there  are  two  stories  in  the  barn,  the  basement  should  con- 
"  tain, — 

1.  Stables  for  cattle.  4.   Manure  shed. 

2.  Shelter  for  sheep.  5.   Cistern. 

3.  Root  cellar.  6.   Horse-power. 

7.   Cjarse-tool  room. 

"  The  second  floor  should  contain, — 

1.  Biys  for  hay  and  grain.  3.   Stables  for  horses. 

2.  Thrashing  rtoor,  4.    Granary. 

5.   Harness  room. 

"  For  three  stories,  these  should  be  so  arranged  that  the  base- 
"  ment  may  be  similar  to  the  two-story  plan,  and  the  second 
*'  story  should  contain, — 

1.  Bay  for  hay,  3.    Granary. 

2.  Stables  for  horses.  4.   Harness  room. 

"  The  third  or  upper  story, — 

I.  Thrashing  floor.  3.    Bays  fjr  grain,  including  space  over  floor, 

a.  Continuation  of  hay  bay.  4,   Openings  to  granary  below. 


FEXCES    AXD    FARM    BUILDINGS.  77 

"  In  all  cases  there  should  be  ventilators,  shoots  for  hav,  lad- 
*'  ders  to  ascend  bays,  and  stairs  to  reach  quicklv  everv  part ; 
"  besides  which  every  bin  in  the  granary  should  be  graduated 
*'  like  the  chemists'  assay-glass,  so  that  the  owner  may  by  a 
"  glance  at  the  figures  marked  inside,  see  precisely  how  many 
•■'  bushels  there  are  within.  A  blackboard  should  be  in  every 
"granary,  for  marking  or  calculating;  one  in  the  stable,  to 
"  receive  directions  from  the  owner  in  relation  to  feeding,  or 
"  keeping  accounts  of  the  same  ;  and  a  third  should  face  the 
"  thrashing  floor,  for  recording  any  results." 

So  much  for  barns.  I  have  used  all  the  space  that  can  be  de- 
voted to  the  subject  in  a  work  having  the  wide  range  which 
this  has  ;  yet  I  have  hardly  done  more  than  to  introduce  the 
subject  in  its  more  important  aspect,  and  have  attempted  only  to 
enlist  the  interest  of  the  reader,  and,  by  showing  him  what  others 
have  done  or  described,  to  induce  him,  if  he  have  need  for  a  barn 
on  his  own  farm,  to  give  the  subject,  (which  is  more  fully  treated 
in  other  publications,)  the  fullest  attention,  and  to  study  well  the 
requirements  of  his  own  particular  case. 

Other  farm  buildings  will  be  considered  in  connection  with  the 
particular  branches  of  industry  to  which  they  belong :  corn-cribs, 
with  corn  culture,  for  example  ;  poultry  houses  with  poultry,  &c. 
In  conclusion,  I  would  say  that  I  have  found  it  to  be  to  my  own 
advantage,  and  am  sure  that  other  farmers  would  find  it  to  theirs, 
to  employ  a  competent  architect  to  make  complete  plans  of  the 
whole  work  before  commencing  operations.  It  saves  material, 
saves  time,  and  saves  the  cost  and  annoyance  of  many  alterations, 
which  are  sure  to  suggest  themselves  during  the  progress  of  the 
work,  unless  the  details  have  been  previously  studied  out  as  they 
only  can  be  with  the  assistance  of  complete  drawings  made  to  a 
scale. 

BARN-YARDS. 

The  barn-yard  must  necessarily  be  regulated  by  the  character 
of  the  land  on  which,  largely  for  other  considerations,  it  has  been 
found  necessary  to  locate  the  buildings,  yet  it  should  have  its  due 
weight  in  determining  the  location. 


73  n  A  X  D  Y  -  B  0  0  K    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

When  cattle  are  kept  at  pasture,  at  least  during  the  day-time  in 
summer,  it  should  be  a  very  good  reason  that  induces  a  farmer  to 
so  place  his  barn  that  he  cannot  have  the  yard  on  the  warmest 
and  sunniest  side  of  it.  Ordinarily  the  coldest  winds  of  winter 
blow  from  the  north  and  northwest,  while  the  warmth  of  the 
morning  sun  in  winter  falls  best  into  nooks  whose  lookout  is 
toward  the  southeast.  Therefore  a  southeast  exposure  is  usually 
the  best.  If  there  are  to  be  several  buildings,  they  should  be  so 
arranged  as  to  shelter  the  yard  from  the  north  and  west.  Shelter 
from  the  east  is  not  so  important,  but  if  it  can  be  conveniently 
procured  it  has  a  certain  advantage  if  so  arranged  as  to  allow  the 
earlv  morning  sun  to  fall  in  the  vard.  A  close  fence,  six  or  seven 
feet  high,  would  be  better  than  a  high  building.  When  a  shed  is 
to  be  used,  it  is  a  good  plan  to  build  the  barn  on  the  north  side 
and  the  shed  on  the  west  side  of  the  yard. 

The  barn-yard  ought,  alwavs,  to  have  sufficient  slope  for  sur- 
face drainage,  but  the  wash  should  be  collected  in  a  pit  or  deep 
pond  hole  at  one  side,  and  into  this,  straw,  leaves,  and  muck  mav 
be  thrown  to  absorb  the  liquids  reaching  it.  If  cattle  are  to  be 
fed  in  the  yard,  and  are  expected  to  make  manure  of  a  large 
amount  of  corn-fodder  and  straw,  it  is  very  well  to  have  a  nearly 
level  vard,  with  a  slight  depression  in  the  center,  and  to  give  them 
a  dry  footing  by  a  profuse  feeding  of  these  materials,  of  which  they 
will  consume  the  best  parts,  trampling  the  refuse  under  foot.  Such 
an  accumulation  properly  composted  during  the  summer  will  make 
excellent  manure  for  autumn  use. 

No  farmer,  however,  who  has  once  learned  the  feeding  value  of 
both  corn-fodder  and  straw,  when  cut  and  mixed  with  other  food, 
will  continue  to  waste  them  under  the  feet  of  his  animals,  unless  he 
is  entirely  careless  of  his  own  interest,  or  has  a  superabundance 
of  fodder  that  he  cannot  sell  to  advantage.  By  hook  or  by 
crook,  he  will  contrive,  in  some  wav,  to  make  them  available  for 
food. 

Whatever  plan  is  pursued  the  surface  of  the  barn-yard  should 
receive  no  water,  save  that  which  falls  directly  upon  it  from  the 
clouds.     Surface   gutters    should    protect    it  against  the    flow  of 


FENCES    AND    FARM    BUILDINGS.  79 

water  from  other  ground,  and  the  roofs  should  be  supplied  with 
eave-troughs,  discharging  into  cisterns  or  outside  of  the  yard. 

It  will  always  pay  to  build  a  rough  shed  over  that  part  of  the 
yard  which  is  to  contain  the  pit  or  hollow  for  the  manure,  and  the 
yard  drainage, — especially  if  the  droppings  of  the  cattle  are  daily 
removed  from  the  rest  of  the  yard  and  added  to  a  compost  under 
the  sheds. 

FARM    ROADS. 

I  would  not  feel  justified  in  recommending  that  extra  men  and 
teams  be  employed  to  make  substantial  farm  roads,  but  there  are 
at  least  a  hundred  half  days  in  the  year,  when  the  regular  force 
of  the  farm  can  be  occupied  with  such  work — adding  by  every 
hour's  work  to  the  permanent  future  efficiency  of  the  teaming 
appliances.  Any  thing  which  will  enable  each  team,  in  all  future 
time,  to  carry  a  heavier  load  than  is  now  practicable,  or  to  carry 
the  same  load  more  .easily,  must  add  to  the  permanent  money 
value  of  the  farm. 

The  foundation  of  all  good  roads — at  least  when  any  improve- 
ment of  the  natural  roadway  is  necessary, — lies  in  good  drainage. 
Roads  are  made  soft  only  by  water.  Either  the  subsoil  is  so 
badly  drained  that  the  water  of  the  surface  soil  cannot  sink  into 
it,  or  it  is  so  wet  that  the  frost  is  a  long  time  in  leaving  it  in  the 
spring.  So  long  as  the  frost  remains  in  the  subsoil  it  forms  an 
effectual  barrier  to  the  descent  of  the  water  which  makes  the 
surface  soft.  Land  on  a  well-drained  subsoil  parts  with  its  frost 
very  much  earlier  in  the  spring  than  that  on  an  undrained  one 
does.  It  is,  therefore,  of  the  utmost  importance  that  the  subsoij 
be  as  dry  as  it  can  be  made. 

Fig-  23- 


_    12  ft 


Thorough  draining  will  not  make  a  road  always  hard,  but  it  will 
very  much  lessen  the  duration  of  the  muddy  condition,  both  when 


80  II  ANDY -BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

the  frost  is  coming  out  of  the  ground  and  in  times  of  protracted 
rains.  A  narrow  road,  say  not  more  than  twelve  feet  wide,  may 
be  sufficiently  drained  by  a  single  line  of  tiles  laid  under  its 
center,  as  shown  in  Fig.  23  ;  but  if  it  is  much  wider  than  that  it 
will  be  better  to  lay  a  drain  at  or  near  each  side,  as  shown  in  Fin. 
24.  These  drains  should  not  be  less  than  three  feet  deep.  The 
manner  of  constructing  them  is  given  in  the  chapter  on  "  Drain- 
Fig.  24. 


?/•< 


age."  They  should  be  made  with  the  same  care  and  in  the  same 
manner  as  ordinary  land  drains,  and  may  often  be  connected  with 
the  same  system. 

While  a  good  underdrain,  alone,  will  often  very  much  improve 
a  good  road,  it  is  usually  advisable,  especially  in  heavy  land,  or 
on  land  with  a  heavy  subsoil,  to  use  stones,  and  if  possible  gravely 
which  will  make  a  road  good  at  all  seasons  of  the  year. 

As  in  the  case  of  many  other  sorts  of  farm  work,  there  are  two 
ways  of  making  a  stone  road,  both  equally  costly,  but  by  no 
means  equally  effectual.  One  way  is  to  dig  out  the  road  to  a 
depth  of  a  foot  and  a  half  for  its  whole  width,  and  fill  it  to  within 
six  inches  of  the  surface  with  stones  carefully  laid  on  their  flat 
sides,  and  brought  to  a  uniform  face  at  the  top — then  to  cover 
them  with  gravel  or  other  filling.  If  gravel  cannot  be  obtained, 
a  mixture  of   broken   stones   and   common  earth  makes  a   good 

.  Fig-    25- 


t^AUVtt  l\  'VHI.'I 


•1.-, 


12    ft 


surface.  This  sort  of  road  (shown  in  Fig.  25)  is  excellent  when 
first  made,  but  a  few  years  of  heavy  teaming  will  "shake  it  to 
pieces."     The  jarring  caused   by  heavy  teams  passing  over  it  will 


FENCES    AND    FARM    BUILDINGS. 


81 


displace  some  of  the  stones  in  the  lower  bed,  and  the  gravel  from 
above  will  work  under  them.  When  this  disturbance  is  once 
commenced  it  goes  on  more  and  more  rapidly,  until  finally  some  of 
the  stones  will  have  worked  their  way  to  the  top,  some  of  the  gravel 
will  have  gone  to  the  bottom,  and  the  road  will  be  really  in  a 
worse  condition  than  before  the  improvement  was  undertaken — 
but  (ovfarm  roads  the  plan  is  a  good  one. 

A  much  better  and  more  durable  road,  made  on  a  modification 
of  what  is  called  the  Telford  plan,  although  no  more  expensive 
than  that  just  described,  is  very  much  more  satisfactory  and 
enduring,  especially  for  public  highways. 

The  ground  is  dug  out  to  a  depth  of  two  feet  at  the  sides,  and 
nine  or  ten  inches  in  the  center,  but  in  a  curved  line,  as  shown 
in  Fig.  26.     The  depressions  at   the   sides  are  solidly  packed  with 

Fig.  26. 


small  stones  to  the  line  of  the  slope  of  the  surface  of  the  road. 
Larger  stones — as  flat  ones  as  can  be  found — are  then  set  on  edge 
as  closely  as  possible  over  the  whole  bed,  and  "  spalls"  or  "  chink- 
ing stones,"  are  tightly  wedged  in  between  their  tops.  A  heavy 
iron  maul  or  sledge-hammer  is  then  used  to  drive  in  the  wedging 
stones,  and  to  break  down  the  projecting  points  of  the  larger 
stones,  until  the  whole  mass  is  as  firm  as  a  floor.  Sufficient 
"crown"  should  be  given  to  this  bed  to  afford  surface  drainage, 
(say  3  inches  in  an  i8-ft.  road,)  and  only  so  much  gravel  or  earth 
put  upon  it  as  will  completely  cover  the  stones,  and  prevent  the 
wheels  being  jarred  by  them.  If  properly  drained  and  well  made, 
such  a  road  will  last  a  life-time,  and  will  require  very  little  atten- 
tion to  keep  it  in  order. 


CHAPTER     V 


DRAINAGE. 


DRAINING    WITH    TILES. 


To  condense  within  the  limits  of  a  few  pages  even  a  tolerably 
complete  description  of  the  construction  and  mode  of  operation 
of  tile-drains,  and  to  give  a  clear  statment  of  the  theory  of  under- 
drainage  in  general,  is  no  easy  task,  and  it  would  probably  be  of 
little  use  for  me  to  attempt  to  do  it  more  satisfactorily  than  by 
making  the  following  extracts  from  what  I  have  already  written 
on  the  subject.* 

The  following  articles  on  the  subject,  which  I  have  at  various 
times  furnished  for  the  Evening  Post^  properly  bear  upon  this  branch 
of  it: — 

WHAT    IS    UMDERDRAINING  ? 

It  is  an  axiom  of  good  farming  that  all  land  should  be  thoroughly 
underdrained  :  undcrdraincd,  of  course,  either  naturally  or  arti- 
ficially. 

There  is  nothing  mvstcrious  either  in  the  operation  or  in  its  effect. 
The  ability  to  plow  and  plant  early  in  the  spring,  the  perfect 
germination  of  seeds,  the  rapid  and  luxuriant  growth  of  healthy 
plants,  the  ability  to  plow  and  otherwise  cultivate  growing  crops, 

*i.  An  Essay  on  "Tile  Draining,"  in  the  American  Agricultural  Annu.il  for  1867. 
New  York  :  Oranj^e  JuJJ  &  Co. 

a.    "  Draining  for  Fk  fit  and  Draining  for  Health,"  published  by  the  same  house.  (1867.) 

3.  A  Cli  ipter  en  "  Tile  Drain'ng,"  in  the  Farmers  and  Mechanici*  Manual.  New 
York:    E.  B.  Tieac&Co  (1S68.) 

4.  Various  Communications  to  the  American  Agricultur'nt  and  to  the  Nc-u)  York 
Evening  Fast  on  the  same  subject. 


DRAINAGE.  83 

and  the  opportunity  for  seasonable  harvesting  and  for  fall  plowing, 
all  depend  more  upon  the  condition  of  the  soil  as  to  moisture  than 
on  any  other  single  circumstance. 

For  the  purpose  o*f  illustration,  we  will  suppose  an  acre  of  land 
to  be  inclosed  in  a  water-tight  box,  its  bottom  being  four  feet 
below  the  surface,  and  its  sides  reaching  to  the  surface,  with  no 
outlet  at  any  point.  The  whole  acre  lies  open  to  the  rain,  and 
the  whole  depth  is  saturated  by  every  heavy  storm.  This  acre  of 
land  may  have  the  most  thorough  cultivation  of  which  it  is  capa- 
ble, and  may  be  manured  as  land  was  never  manured  yet,  and  its 
produce  will  inevitably  be  precarious.  In  very  good  seasons  it 
may  be  fair.  In  wet  seasons  it  will  be  weak  and  badly  matured, 
and  in  dry  ones  it  will  be  mean  and  stunted.  It  will  be  the  first 
of  May  instead  of  the  middle  of  March  when  we  plow  it  ;  the 
plowing  will  paste  together  more  than  it  crumbles  it ;  the  har- 
rowing will  do  as  much  harm  as  good  j  the  seed  will  probably  rot 
in  the  ground  and  have  to  be  planted  a  second  time  ;  and  the 
growth  will  be  slow  except  during  the  short  interval  (often  only 
a  few  days)  between  the  conditions  of  "•  too  wet  "  and  "  too  dry." 

In  short,  the  soil  will  be  putty  one-half  of  the  time,  and  brick 
the  rest  of  it :  "  It  girns  a'  the  summer  and  it  greets  a'  the  winter." 
It  is  such  a  soil  as  no  man  can  afford  to  cultivate  at  all.  Now  let 
us  knock  the  bottom  out  of  our  box  and  see  the  result.  Of  course 
we  must  assume  that  it  is  underlaid  by  a  stratum  of  gravel  or  other 
porous  material.  The  water  which  has  filled  the  spaces  between 
the  particles  of  the  soil,  lying  there  until  evaporated  at  the  surface, 
sinks  slowly  away  and  leaves  the  whole  mass  pervaded  by  air,  the 
particles  themselves  holding  by  absorption  enough  water  to  make 
them  sufficiently  moist  for  the  highest  fertility,  but  affording  very 
little  for  the  cooling  operation  of  evaporation  at  the  surface.  When 
a  heavy  rain  falls,  the  soil  may  be  for  a  short  time  saturated  (soaked 
full)  with  water,  and  this  drives  out  all  of  the  air  it  has  contained. 
As  the  water  settles  away,  after  the  rain,  fresh  air  follows  and 
embraces  every  atom  with  its  active  fertilizing  oxygen,  and  deposits, 
in  the  upper  layers,  carbonic  acid,  and  ammonia,  and  all  else  that 
makes  air  impure  and  soil  rich.    Indeed,  the  water  itself  h:is  washed 


84  IIAXDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

the  air  clean,  and  then  on  filtering  through  the  loose  soil,  has 
deposited,  near  enough  to  the  surface  to  be  within  the  reach  of 
roots,  all  of  its  impurities. 

Seed  planted  now  finds  as  much  moisture  as  it  needs  for  germ- 
ination, and  only  as  much  -,  its  rotting  in  the  ground  is  impossible. 
And  if  we  will  follow  all  of  the  processes  of  growth,  and  all  of 
the  operations  of  cultivation  and  harvesting,  we  shall  find  that 
the  former  are  never  impeded  bv  too  great  wetness  of  the  soil,  and 
that  the  latter  mav  be  performed  always  in  good  season  and  with 
the  best  effect.  Neither  are  the  crops  destroyed,  or  even  greatly 
injured  by  drought,  for  if  there  is  one  effect  of  underdraining  that 
is  established  beyond  doubt,  it  is  that  it  is  at  least  the  basis  of  all 
those  operations  by  which  we  most  successfully  attempt  to  over- 
come the  effect  of  drought  ;  and  it  is  itself  the  greatest  of  all 
preventives  of  drought. 

Instead  of  being  a  pest  to  the  farmer,  disappointing  half  of  his 
hopes,  and  baffling  his  best  skill,  this  acre  of  land  has  become  a 
pliant  tool  in  his  hands.  So  far  as  it  is  possible  for  him  to  be 
independent  of  the  changes  of  the  weather,  he  has  become  inde- 
pendent of  them,  and  he  works  with  a  certainty  of  the  best  reward, 
which  changes  his  occupation  from  a  game  of  hazard  to  a  work 
of  fair  promise. 

To  answer  the  question,  then,  which  stands  at  the  head  of  this 
article,  underdraining  is  the  knocking  out  of  the  bottom  of  the 
water-tight  box  in  which  our  soil  is  incased.  If  we  are  the  happy 
occupiers  of  land  through  which  water  settles  away  as  it  falls,  we  have 
no  need  of  the  operation.  But  if  our  only  (or  our  chief)  outlet 
is  at  the  surface,  with  the  drying  sun  and  wind  for  draining  tiles, 
we  do  need  it,  and  we  can  never  hope  for  the  success  to  which 
our  seed,  our  manure  and  our  labor  entitles  us  until  we  adopt  it. 

How  it  is  best  to  do  the  work  depends  on  soil,  situation,  price 
of  labor,  price  of  material,  and  depth  of  outlet  that  can  be  secured. 

Stone  drains,  tile  drains,  brush  drains,  board  drains,  mole  plow 
tracks,  and  all  other  conduits  for  water  are  proven  pretty  good, 
so  long  as  they  continue  to  afford  a  channel  throush  which  the 
water  can  run  freely.     The  choice  between  them  is  based  on  the 


DRAIXAGE.  85 

questions  of  durability,  cost,  and  availability.  The  only  positive 
rules  applicable  to  all  cases  are  that  the  drain  should  be  a  covered 
one,  and  not  an  open  ditch,  and  that  it  should  be,  whenever  possi- 
ble, at  least  three,  and  better  four,  feet  deep. 

FARM    DRAINAGE, 

While  it  would  hardly  be  fair  to  say  that  farmers  are  more  slow 
than  men  of  other  classes  to  adopt  improvements  in  the  methods 
of  their  trade,  as  hardly  any  other  industry  has  been,  within  the 
same  time,  so  completely  revolutionized  as  has  farming,  in  the 
single  item  of  hay-making,  since  the  introduction  of  the  mowing 
machine — still  there  are  some  improvements  whose  practical  use- 
fulness, and  whose  applicability  are  universally  acknowledged,  yet 
which  seem  to  find  it  hard  work  to  fiight  their  way  to  general 
adoption. 

The  drainage  of  moist  land  is  one  of  these.  We  use  the  ex- 
pression moist  land^  because  land  which  is  absolutely  wet  is  either 
drained  or  let  alone,  as  a  matter  of  course.  Every  farmer  knows 
that  his  swamps  must  either  be  made  dry  (or  at  least  only  moist) 
or  must  be  left  to  the  bulrushes.  The  far  larger  part  of  our  cul- 
tivated farms,  which  come  under  the  designations  "late," 
"  naturally  cold,"  "  heavy,"  "  sour,"  *•'  springy,"  etc., — the  larger 
part  of  all  our  more  fertile  lands,  that  is, — are  cultivated  year  after 
year,  under  very  heavy  disadvantages  ;  their  half  crops,  and  the 
extra  labor  and  "catching"  work  that  they  entail,  being  accepted 
as  a  sort  of  doom  from  which  there  is  no  available  means  of  relief. 

Almost  every  farmer  of  such  land  is  ready  to  admit  that  it 
would  be  better  for  being  drained,  but  he  has  got  on  so  long  with- 
out it,  and  draining  is  such  expensive  work,  that,  having  no  example 
for  its  benefits  before  his  eyes,  he  "gets  on"  without  it  to  the 
end  of  his  days. 

It  does  seem  hard  to  believe  that  on  solid  upland,  that  only  cost 
fifty  dollars  an  acre  in  the  first  instance,  and  produces  fair  crops 
in  fair  seasons,  it  will  pay  to  spend  from  fifty  dollars  to  one  hundred 
dollars  an  acre  more  to  make  it  a  little  dryer,  where  more  of  the 
same  sort  can  be  bought   at   the   original    price.      But  exactly  this 


86  HANDY- BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

must  be  believed  before  farming  can  become  in  America  what  it 
already  (and  bv  means  of  drainage)  has  become  in  England,  and 
before  our  farmers  can  be  so  successful  as  they  ought  to  be  and 
as  they  have  the  means  of  becoming. 

The  cost  of  draining  (and  its  cost  is  the  great  obstacle  to  its 
adoption)  should  be  compared,  not  with  the  cost  of  the  land,  but 
with  the  capital  on  which  the  yearly  cost  of  labor,  seed,  and  manure 
is  the  interest.  For  instance,  the  following  is  a  very  moderate 
estimate  of  the  expense  of  raising  an  acre  of  Indian  corn,  when 
it  is  intended  to  be  the  first  crop  of  a  rotation  running  through 
four  or  five  years  : — 

Plowing $5  oo 

Harrowing I  50 

Manure 12  03 

Seed    53 

Planting 2  00 

Cultivation  (hoeing,  &c.) 7  50 

Harvesting 10  00 

$38   50 

This  is  a  constant  quantity,  and  is  an  outlay  that  must  be  made 
on  wet  land  as  well  as  on  dry,  on  cheap  land  as  well  as  on  dear. 
It  is  (at  seven  per  cent,)  the  interest  on  over  $500,  That  and 
the  $50  paid  for  the  land  make  the  total  investment  of  capital  in 
the  operation. 

It  will  be  a  good  crop — a  very  good  one — on  such  land  as  we 
are  describing  ("  naturally  cold  "  land)  that  yields  fifty  bushels  of 
corn  and  two  tons  of  fodder,  worth  $57  50 — or  about  10  per  cent, 
on  the  investment  of  $550, 

By  precisely  the  same  manuring  and  cultivation,  on  the  same 
land,  after  thorough  underdraining,  (say  at  a  cost  of  §100  per  acre, 
although  this  is  too  high,)  in  a  season  that  would  yield  the  above 
crop  on  the  undrained  land,  we  should  surely  get  seventy-five 
bushels  of  corn  and  three  tons  of  fodder,  worth  $86  25,  or  thir- 
teen and  a  third  per  cent,  interest  on  an  investment  of  $650. 

This  difference  of  crops,  (an  increase  of  fifty  per  cent,,)  costmg 
only  the  interest  on  the  outlay  for  draining,  which  is  as  permanent 
as  the  land  itself,  is  not  more  than  may  be  expected  under  average 


D  R  A  I X  A  G  E .  37 

circumstances  ;  yet  we  have  stated  only  a  part  of  the  argument 
on  which  the  apostles  of  drainage  justly  depend  for  the  advance- 
ment of  their  ideas. 

Land  that  remains  wet  so  far  into  the  spring  as  often  to  delay 
the  plowing  until  it  is  time  to  plant,  may,  after  being  drained,  often 
be  plowed  in  March  instead  of  May  ;  when  the  seed  is  planted, 
it  will  never  be  rotted  in  the  ground  and  call  for  a  new  planting, 
if  the  water  can  find  its  way  to  the  drains  below.  Weeds,  which 
grow  while  the  land  is  too  clammy  to  be  hoed,  and  get  beyond 
our  control,  so  that  when  the  ground  is  dry  hoes  and  horse-hoes 
have  to  wage  an  unequal  warfare  against  them,  may,  on  drained  land, 
be  attacked  on  almost  any  sunny  day  and  killed  with  little  work  ; 
and  when  the  time  comes  for  hauling  ofF  the  crop,  as  in  spring  in 
hauling  on  manure,  it  will  not  be  necessary  to  wait  weeks  for  the 
ground  to  be  solid  enough  for  the  teams  to  work,  nor  will  the 
ground  be  so  much  injured  in  the  operation. 

In  short,  work  can  be  done  in  proper  season,  done  in  a  proper 
manner,  and  done  with  a  definite  certainty  of  a  fair  return,  and 
with  very  much  less  dependence  on  the  weather  than  when  the 
water  of  heavy  rains  has  to  lie  soaking  in  the  soil  until  dried  up 
by  the  sun  and  wind. 

It  may  be  objected  to  the  above  calculation  that  it  is  unfair  to 
capitalize  the  annual  cost  of  cultivation,  manure,  etc.,  because 
these  expenditures  come  from  the  yearly  income  of  the  farmer, 
and  do  not  represent  the  interest  on  his  capital.  If  this  view  of 
the  case  be  taken,  it  will  surely  be  fair  to  charge  the  cost  of  drain- 
ing by  its  annual  interest,  and  not  by  its  gross  amount,  for  it  bene- 
fits not  only  the  crop  of  the  first  year,  but  of  all  subsequent  years 
— and  often  in  an  increasing  degree — while  it  is  subject  to  no 
deterioration,  but  remains  as  permanent  and  as  safe  an  investment 
as  is  a  mortgage  on  a  neighbor's  farm. 

What  is  needed  is  that  we  have  more  general  information  on 
the  subject,  more  practical  examples  of  the  beneficial  effects  of 
draining,  and  cheaper  draining  tiles.  All  of  these  will  come  slowly 
at  first,  but  they  are  coming  surely  ;  and  they  cannot  fail  to  increase 
in  rapid  progression,  by  the  very  effect  of  their  own  influence. 


38  IIAXDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

UNDERDRAINING    Vt'KSUS    DROUGHT. 

That  land  should  be  made  damper  by  being  made  more  dry, 
that  undcrdraining  should  be  one  of  the  best  preventives  of  the 
ill  effects  of  drought — this  is  the  apparently  anomalous  proposi- 
tion on  which  one  of  the  strongest  arguments  in  favor  of  draining 
is  based. 

When  we  see  a  field  baked  to  the  consistence  of  a  brick,  gap- 
ing open  in  wide  cracks,  and  covered  with  a  stunted  growth  of 
parched  and  thirsty  plants,  it  seems  hard  to  believe  that  the  simple 
laying  of  hollow  tiles  four  feet  deep  in  the  dried-up  mass  would 
do  any  thing  at  all  toward  the  improvement  of  its  condition.  For 
the  present  season  it  would  not  ;  but  for  the  next  it  would,  and 
for  every  season  thereafter,  and  in  increasing  degree,  so  long  as 
the  tiles  continued  to  act  as  effective  drainage. 

The  baking  and  the  cracking,  and  the  unfertile  condition  of 
the  soil  are  the  result  of  a  previous  condition  of  entire  saturation. 
Clay  cannot  be  moulded  into  bricks,  nor  can  it  be  dried  into 
lumps,  unless  it  is  made  soaking  wet.  Dry  or  only  damp  clay, 
once  made  fine,  can  never  again  be  made  lumpy  unless  it  is  first 
made  thoroughly  wet,  and  is  pressed  together  while  in  its  wet 
condition.  Neither  can  a  considerable  heap  of  pulverized  clay, 
kept  covered  from  the  rain,  but  exposed  to  sun  and  air,  ever  be- 
come even  apparently  dry  except  within  an  inch  or  two  of  its 
surface. 

Undcrdraining,  if  the  work  is  properly  done  of  course,  after  it 
has  had  time  to  bring  the  soil  for  a  depth  of  two  or  three  feet  to 
a  thoroughly  well-drained  condition,  will  equally  prevent  it  from 
becoming  baked  into  lumps,  or  from  being,  for  any  considerable 
depth  below  the  surface,  too  dry  for  the  purposes  of  vegetation. 
In  the  first  place,  the  water  of  heavy  spring  ruins,  instead  of  ly- 
ing soaking  in  the  soil  until  the  rapid  drying  of  summer  bakes  it 
into  coherent  clods,  settles  away  and  leaves  the  clay,  within  a 
few  hours  after  the  rain-fall  ceases  and  before  rapid  evaporation 
commences,  too  much  dried  to  crack  into  masses. 

Of  course,  this  is  only  the  beginning  of  the  operations  of  im- 


DRAINAGE.  89 

provement.  It  is  merely  the  foundation,  but  on  heavy  soils  it  is 
the  necessary  foundation,  of  the  processes  (natural  and  artificial) 
by  which  the  improvement  is  effected  and  made  permanent.  The 
only  direct  effects  of  draining  are  to  prevent  the  soil  from  ever 
being  completely  saturated  for  any  considerable  time,  and  to  re- 
move from  below  water,  which  if  not  so  removed  would  be 
evaporated  from  the  surface. 

The  formation  of  a  crust  on  the  surface  of  the  ground  is  in 
direct  proportion  to  the  quantity  of  water  that  is  removed  by 
evaporation,  and  the  crust  constitutes  a  barrier  against  the  admis- 
sion of  air  in  direct  proportion  to  its  thickness.  Consequently, 
the  larger  the  quantity  of  the  water  that  is  removed  by  the  drains 
the  smaller  is  the  obstacle  offered  to  the  entrance  of  air. 

The  more  constantly  the  lower  parts  of  the  soil  are  relieved 
from  excess  of  water  and  supplied  with  air,  the  more  deeply  will 
roots  descend,  and  the  more  frequently  will  the  air  in  the  lower 
soil  be  changed — the  easier  its  communication  with  the  atmos- 
phere. 

On  these  two  principles  depends  the  immunity  from  drought 
which  underdraining  helps  us  to  secure.  In  dry  weather  the 
soil  gets  its  moisture  from  the  deposit  of  dew — on  the  surface 
during  the  night,  and  on  the  surfaces  of  the  particles  of  the  lower 
soil  constantly,  day  and  night. 

The  familiar  example  of  the  "  sweating  "  of  a  cold  pitcher  that 
stands  in  the  sun  and  wind  on  a  hot  July  day,  illustrates  the 
manner  in  which  the  dew-laden  air  of  our  dryest  weather  gives 
up  its  moisture  (greater  then  than  at  any  other  time)  to  the  parti- 
cles of  the  cool-shaded  lower  soil  with  which  it  comes  in  con- 
tact. A  box  of  finely  pulverized  earth,  two  feet  deep,  previously 
dried  in  an  oven — placed  in  the  sun  and  wind  on  the  dryest  and 
hottest  day  of  summer,  would  soon  become  sufficiently  moist  for 
the  growth  of  plants,  by  the  deposit  of  dew  among  its  lower  and 
cooler  particles.  Let  the  same  earth  be  saturated  with  water  and 
closely  compressed,  and  it  would,  under  the  same  circum- 
stances, be  baked  and  dry  throughout  its  who!e  depth.  No 
air  could  enter  for  the  deposit  of  dew,  and,  from  its  compact  con- 


90  HAXDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

dition,  all  of  the  moisture  that  it  contains  would  move,  by  capillary 
attraction,  from  particle  to  particle,  to  supply  the  evaporation  at 
the  surface,  while  the  crust  thus  formed  on  the  surface  would 
prevent  the  free  admission  of  air,  even  if  the  lower  soil  were 
loose  and  porous. 

It  is  the  same  in  the  field.  A  heavy  clay  soil,  saturated  with 
water,  dries  up  to  a  condition  that  will  not  admit  of  the  circula- 
tion of  air.  Even  if  the  thin  surface-soil,  containing  much  vege- 
table matter,  is  loose  enough,  it  is  soon  heated  to  such  a  depth 
that  the  little  moisture  it  receives  during  the  cooler  parts  of  the 
day  is  dried  out  by  the  midday  sun,  while  the  compact  subsoil  is 
impervious  to  all  atmospheric  influence.  Plants  grow  well 
enough  during  the  weeks  that  separate  the  rains  of  early  Jpring 
from  the  heat  of  midsummer  ;  but  when  the  drought  sets  in — the 
roots  being  only  in  the  surface-soil — for  roots  will  not  enter  a 
cold,  saturated  subsoil — vigorous  vegetation  ceases,  and  we  accuse 
Providence  of  having  sent  us  a  scourge  for  our  sins.  As  well 
blame  Providence  for  our  loss  if  we  neglected  to  plow  and  har- 
row and  plant  at  seed-time,  as  for  loss  from  neglect  to  drain  away 
the  water  that  places  us  at  the  mercy  of  the  drought. 

If  we  underdrain  the  land,  even  without  the  use  of  the  sub- 
soil plow, — but  rather  with  it, — the  early  growth  will  be  less  pre- 
carious and  more  uniform,  and  the  roots  of  our  crops  will  push 
down  into  the  subsoil,  where  they  will  find,  all  through  the  dryest 
summer,  enough  moisture  for  their  uses.  For  the  first  year  or 
two,  of  course,  we  could  only  hope  to  modify  our  evils,  but  in 
time  we  should  find,  as  the  writer  has  found  in  his  own  practice, 
that  if  we  keep  the  surface  of  our  underdrained  ground  well  stirred, 
a  six  weeks'  drought,  that  lays  the  whole  country  side  bare,  has 
little  power  to  diminish  our  crops. 

KINDS    OF   SOIL   WHICH   ARE    BENEFITED    BY  TILE-DR.MNING. 

All  soils  which  are  so  retentive  that  the  water  of  rains  is  not 
(at  least  during  the  season  of  growth,)  absorbed  as  it  falls,  and 
carried  readily  down  to  a  point  below  the  ordinary  reach  of  the 
roots  of   crops — say  to  a  depth  of   at    least  three  feet — will  be 


DRAINAGE.  91 

benefited  by  draining.  With  the  exception  of  actual  swamps, 
the  soils  which  derive  the  greatest  advantage,  are,  of  course, 
those  which,  during  the  spring  and  fall,  are  completely  saturated 
with  water,  and  during  the  heat  of  summer,  are  baked  to  a  hard 
crust  and  broken  with  fissures  ;  but  all  heavy  loams,  friable  soils, 
which  rest  on  impervious  subsoil  (or  hard  pan), — indeed  all  but 
sands,  and  the  lighter  deep  loams  and  gravels — are  very  much 
benefited  bv  such  a  removal  of  their  excess  of  water  as  can  be 
economically  effected  only  by  tile-draining. 

THE      MODE     OF    ACTION,    AND     THE     EFFECT     OF    UNDERDRAINS. 

A  thoroughlv  underdrained  field  is  one  which  is  underlaid,  at 
suitable  intervals,  with  lines  of  continuous  pipe  drains,  which 
admit  the  water  of  the  soil,  and  convey  it  to  an  outlet,  from 
which  it  is  completelv  removed.  The  water  which  falls  upon 
the  surface  is  at  once  absorbed,  and  settles  through  the  ground 
until  it  reaches  a  point  where  the  soil  is  completely  saturated,  and 
raises  the  general  water  level  ;  when  this  level  reaches  the  floor 
of  the  drains,  the  water  enters  at  the  joints  and  is  carried  off. 
That  which  passes  down  through  the  land  lying  between  the 
drains,  bears  down  upon  that  which  has  already  accumulated  in  the 
soil,  and  forces  it  to  seek  an  outlet  bv  rising  into  the  drains.*  For 
example,  if  a  barrel  standing  on  end  be  filled  with  earth  which  is 
saturated  with  water,  and  its  bung  be  removed,  the  water  of  satura- 
tion (that  is,  all  which  is  not  held  by  attraction  in  the  particles  of 
earth)  will  be  removed  from  so  much  of  the  mass  as  lies  above  the 
bottom  of  the  bung-hole.  If  a  bucket  of  water  be  now  poured  upon 
the  top,  it  will  not  aP  run  diagonally  toward  the  opening  ;  it  will 
trickle  down  to  the  level  of  the  water  remaining  in  the  barrel, 
and  this  will  rise  and  run  ofr  at  the  bottom  of  the  orifice.  In 
this  manner  the  water,  even  below  the  drainage  level,  is  changed 
with  each  addition  at  the  surface.  In  a  barrel  filled  with  coarse 
pebbles,  the  water  of  saturation  would  maintain  a  nearly  level 
surface  ;   if  the  material  were    more  compact  and  retentive,  a  true 

*  Except  from  quite  near  to  the  drain,  it  is  not  probable  that  the  water  in  the  soil  runs 
laterally  toward  it. 


92  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

level  would  hp  attained  only  after  a  considerable  time.  Toward 
the  end  of  the  flow  the  water  would  stand  highest  at  the  points 
farthest  distant  from  the  outlet.  So,  in  the  land,  after  a  drenching 
rain,  the  water  is  first  removed  to  the  full  depth,  near  the  line  of 
the  drain,  and  that  midway  between  two  drains  settles  much  more 
slowlv,  meeting  more  resistance  from  below,  and  for  a  long  time, 
will  remain  some  inches  higher  than  the  floor  of  the  drain.  The 
usual  condition  of  the  soil  (except  in  very  dry  weather)  would  be 
somewhat  as  represented  in  the  accompanying  cut  (Fig.   27.) 

Fig.  27. 


Lifst     Oh     b.\  1  L  .;ATH).N     Btrwl-tN     UKAINS 


The  dark  shading  to  the  line  b  represents  the  water  of  satura- 
tion in  the  soil,  which,  immediately  after  a  rain  has  stood  at  <?, 
and  is  descending  toward  c.  In  time  of  drought  it  would  in 
most  soils,  descend  nearly  or  quite  to  the  level  of  the  drains,  or 
even,  in  severe  drought,  much  lower  than  this. 

To  provide  for  this  deviation  of  the  line  of  saturation,  in 
practice,  drains  are  placed  deeper  than  would  be  necessary  if  the 
water  sank  at  once  to  the  level  of  the  drain  floor,  the  depth  of 
the  drains  being  increased  with  tlie  increasing  distance  between 
them. 

Theoretically,  every  drop  of  water  which  falls  on  a  field 
should  sink  straight  down  to  the  level  of  the  drains,  and  force  a 
drop  of  water  below  that  level  to  rise  into  the  drain  and  flow 
off.  How  exactly  this  is  true  in  nature  cannot  be  known,  and  is 
not  material.  Drains  made  in  pursuance  of  this  theory  will  be 
effective  for  any  actual  condition. 

Any  system,  which  so  disposes  of  the  water  falling  on  the  land, 
produces  the  following  important  results  : — 


D  R  A  I  X  A  G  E .  93 

1.  //  greatly  lessens  the  evil  effects  of  drought.  During  the 
hottest  weather  there  is  a  great  amount  of  water  in  the  atmos- 
phere which  has  been  evaporated  from  the  earth  bv  heat,  and 
which  is  held  by  heat^  in  the  form  of  vapor.  When  this  vapor 
comes  in  contact  with  bodies  sufficientlv  cooler  than  itself,  they 
take  away  its  heat,  and  the  vapor  contracts  to  the  liquid  form 
(condenses)  and  is  at  once  deposited  as  dew  on  the  surface  of  the 
cooler  substance.  At  night,  after  a  hot  summer  day,  the  earth 
is  much  cooler  than  the  air,  and  consequently,  as  it  absorbs  heat 
from  the  atmosphere  and  from  the  watery  vapor  contained  in  the 
air,  dew  is  deposited.  The  familiar  example  of  a  cold  pitcher, 
which  seems  to  sweat  in  hot  weather,  while  it  is  only  absorbing 
heat  from  the  air,  and  causing  the  vapor  of  the  air  to  be  deposited 
in  a  liquid  form,  is  an  illustration  of  the  action  of  this  law  of 
condensation.  In  like  manner,  a  knife-blade  condenses  dew  from 
the  breath,  by  depriving  the  moisture  in  the  breath  of  its  heat, 
and  thus  causing  it  to  assume  the  liquid  form. 

So,  when  the  water  is  removed  from  the  soil,  the  spaces  between 
its  particles  (which,  before  drainage,  had  been  filled  with  water) 
are  occupied  by  air,  and,  to  a  greater  or  less  extent — owing  to 
the  motion  of  the  air  above  the  surface  caused  by  winds,  and 
to  the  effect  of  changes  of  temperature  below  the  surface — this 
air  is  constantly  changing,  and  that  which  enters  from  above, 
charged  with  vapor,  gives  up  its  heat  and  therefore  its  moisture, 
both  of  which  are  absorbed  by  the  lower  and  cooler  soil.  In 
consequence  of  this  action — especially  where  the  surface  of  the 
soil  is  kept  in  a  loose  condition,  so  as  to  admit  air  freely — 
drained  lands  withstand  drought  better  than  those  which  are 
undrained. 

2.  It  enables  the  soil  to  receive  a  larger  supply  of  the  fertilising 
gases  of  the  atmosphere^  {carbonic  acid  arid  ammonia.')  The  air 
always  contains  more  or  less  of  these  gases,  which,  with  water, 
are  the  chief  sources  of  the  materials  of  which  plants  are  made. 
When  the  water  which  fills  the  spaces  between  the  particles  of 
the  soil  is  drawn  off,  air  enters  and  takes  its  place,  and  the  car- 
bonic acid  and  ammonia  are  absorbed,  ready  to  be  taken  ap  by  the 


94  H  A  X  I)  Y  -  R  0  0  K    0  F    H  C  S  B  A  N  D  R  T  . 

roots  of  plants,  and  to  produce  beneficial   changes  in  the  mineral 
ingredients  of  the  soil. 

The  rain  which  falls,  finding  the  soil  in  a  porous  condition, 
sinks  into  it,  and  gives  up  the  gases  which  it  contains,  passing  out 
of  the  drains,  nearly  pure  ;  while,  if  the  land  were  already  satu- 
rated, or  had  not  been  made  porous  by  the  process  of  draining, 
the  water  would,  to  a  greater  or  less  extent,  run  ofF  over  the 
surface,  and  instead  of  enriching  the  soil,  would  carry  away  some^ 
of  its  more  fertile  parts. 

3.  //  warms  the  bluer  portions  of  the  soil.  We  have  already 
seen  (i)  that  the  air  which  circulates  in  the  soil  gives  up  heat, 
and  it  thus  elevates  the  temperature  of  those  parts  which  are 
cooler  than  the  atmosphere.  The  water  of  rains  also,  in  passing 
down  through  the  soil,  carries  with  it  the  heat  of  the  surface, 
and  deposits  it,  and  a  portion  of  the  heat  which  it  received  from 
the  warm  air  through  which  it  fell,  in  the  lower  and  cooler  parts 
of  the  soil.  In  hot  weather,  the  water  which  issues  from  the 
mouth  of  a  drain  is  often  ten  degrees  cooler  than  that  which 
falls  on  the  surface,  and  all  of  its  lost  heat  has  been  given  to  the 
soil. 

4.  //  lessens  the  cooling  of  the  soil  by  evaporation.  This  is  one 
of  the  most  important  effects  of  draining.  When  liquid  water 
becomes  \apDr,  it  increases  in  bulk  1723  times,  and  it  contains 
1723  times  as  much  heat.  The  heat  required  to  evaporate  it,  is 
taken  from  surrounding  substances.  When  water  is  sprinkled  on 
the  floor,  it  cools  the  room,  because  in  becoming  a  vapor  (drying) 
it  takes  heat  from  the  room.  If  a  wet  cloth  be  placed  on  the 
head,  and  the  evaporation  of  its  water  assisted  by  fanning,  the 
head  becomes  cooler — a  portion  of  its  heat  being  taken  to  convert 
the  water  into  the  condition  of  vapor. 

The  same  action  takes  place  in  the  soil.  When  the  evapora- 
tion of  its  water  is  rapidly  going  on,  bv  the  aid  of  the  sun  and 
wind,  heat  is  abstracted  and  the  soil  becomes  cold.  If  the  water 
ot  the  soil  is  mainly  removed  by  draining,  there  is  comparatively 
little  to  be  evaporated,  and  comparatively  little  heat  is  taken 
away — probably  not  more  than  is  received  from  the  atmosphere,  (3.) 


DRAINAGE.  95 

This  cooling  of  the  soil,  bv  the  evaporation  of  its  water,  greatly 
retards  the  growth  of  crops,  and  the  fact  that  draining  lessens 
evaporation  is  one  of  the  strongest  arguments  in  favor  of  its  adop- 
tion. An  idea  mav  be  formed  of  the  amount  of  heat  taken  from 
the  soil  in  this  way,  from  the  fact  that,  in  midsummer,  twenty- 
five  hogsheads  of  water  may  be  evaporated  from  a  single  acre  in 
twelve  hours. 

5.  //  greatly  facilitates  the  chemical  action  by  which  the  constitu- 
ents of  the  soil  are  prepared  for  the  use  of  plants^  and  by  which  its 
mechanical  texture  is  improved.  Ordinary  soils  contain  roots  and 
other  organic  matters,  and  the  various  minerals  which  aid,  directly 
or  indirectly,  in  the  nutrition  of  plants.  Before  the  roots,  etc., 
which  have  been  left  in  the  soil  bv  a  previous  crop,  can  become 
useful  to  a  new  growth,  they  must  undergo  the  process  of  decay, 
which  is  a  slow  combustion,  requiring  the  action  of  atmospheric 
air.  In  a  soil  saturated  with  water,  this  decay  cannot  take  place. 
It  proceeds  most  actively  in  thoroughly  drained  land,  while  in  land 
which  is  often  too  wet,  it  is  greatly  retarded.  The  mineral  con- 
stituents of  plants  can  be  taken  up  by  roots  only  in  solution  of 
water,  which  can  dissolve  them  only  from  the  surfaces  of  the 
particles  of  the  soil,  and  usually  only  after  they  have  undergone  a 
chemical  change  from  exposure  to  the  air  and  moisture.  The 
more  freely  air  is  admitted  into  the  soil,  the  more  easily  will  the 
coarser  particles  be  disintegrated,  thus  exposing  more  surface,  and 
the  more  readily  will  the  exposed  portions  be  prepared  for  the 
dissolving  of  their  fertilizing  ingredients.  These  chemical  changes 
also  greatly  improve  the  mechanical  condition  of  the  soil,  tending 
to  make  it  more  light  and  friable,  and,  both  from  its  greater  fineness 
and  from  the  increased  amount  of  its  decayed  organic  matter,  to 
enable  it  more  readily  to  absorb  fertilizing  gases  (2)  from  the  air 
and  from  rains,  and  to  condense  the  watery  vapor  of  the  atmos- 
phere in  drv  weather,   (i.) 

6.  //  tends  to  prevent  grass-lands  from  '■'•running  out."  The 
tille-^ing  of  grasses — that  process  by  which  they  constantly  repro- 
duce themselves  bv  offshoots  from  the  crowns  of  the  plants — 
goes  on  during  the  season  of  growth,  as  long  as  the  roots  can  find 

r 


96  n  A  N  D  Y  -  B  0  0  K    OF    III'  S  B  A  N  D  R  Y . 

sufficient  nutriment  in  the  soil,  unless  arrested  bv  their  coming  in 
contact  with  a  cold,  wet,  uncongenial  subsoil.  By  withdrawing 
the  moisture  which  causes  this  uni'axorable  condition  of  the  sub- 
soil, we  may  maintain  a  full  supplv  of  grass  plants,  as  long  as  we 
can  keep  the  soil  rich  enough  to  support  them. 

7.  //  deepens  the  surface  soil.  The  withdrawal  of  the  water 
which,  in  undrained  lands,  occupies  the  subsoil  for  so  great  a  por- 
tion of  the  growing  season,  allows  the  roots  of  plants  to  extend 
much  farther  from  the  surface,  and  in  dccav,  these  roots  deposit 
carbon  (black  mould)  in  the  spaces  of  the  lower  soil,  while  the 
mineral  parts  are  improved  bv  the  action  of  the  air,  thus, 
gradually,  converting  the  subsoil  to  the  condition  of  the  surface 
soil. 

8.  //  renders  soils  earlier  in  the  springs  and  keeps  off' the  effects  of 
cold  iveather  longer  in  the  fall t  because  the  water,  which  renders 
them  cold,  heavy,  and  untillable,  is  earlier  removed,  and  the  excess 
of  water,  which  produces  an  unfertile  condition  on  the  first 
approach  of  cold  weather,  is  withdrawn. 

9.  //  prevents  the  throwing  out  of  grain  in  winter ;  because  the 
water  of  rains  is  at  once  removed,  instead  of  remaining  to  throw 
up  the  surface  by  freezing,  as  it  dees  by  reason  of  the  vertical 
position  taken  by  the  particles  of  ice. 

10.  //  enables  us  to  zvork  much  sooner  after  rains ,  inasmuch  as 
the  water  will  pass  down  to  the  level  of  the  drains  much  sooner 
than  it  will  soak  away  in  an  undrained,  retentive  soil,  or  be 
removed  by  slow  evaporation  from  the  surface  of  the  ground. 

11.  It  prevents  land  from  becoming  sour  ;  because  the  acids  which 
result  from  the  decay  of  organic  matter,  in  the  presence  of  too 
much  moisture,  are  not  formed  in  the  more  healthy  decomposition 
which  takes  place  in  a  sufficiently  dry  and  well-aerated  soil. 

12.  //  lessens  the  formation  of  a  crust  on  the  surface  of  the  soil  after 
rains  in  hot  weather.  When  water,  having  mineral  matters  in 
solution,  is  drawn  up  from  the  lower  soil,  it  deposits  tl.em,  at  the 
point  of  evaporation,  at  the  surface,  often  forming  a  hard  crust, 
which  is  a  complete  shield,  to  prevent  the  admission  of  air  with 
its  fertilizing  gases  and  water  vapor.      In  proportion  to  the  com- 


DRAINAGE. 


97 


pletcness  with  which  the  water  of  rains  is  removed  from  below, 
do  we  lessen  the  evaporation  by  which  this  crust  is  so  largely 
formed. 

DRAINING    OPERATIONS. 


LAYING    OUT    THE  WORK..* 

The  Outlet. — The  first  important  point,  in  arranging  a  sys- 
tem of  drains,  is  to  seek  the  lowest  suitable  point  at  which  an 
outlet  can  be  obtained.  This  should  be,  whenever  possible 
without  too  great  cost,  at  least  four  feet  (better  four  and  a  half 
feet)  below  the  general  level   of  the  land   near  it,  that   the  drains 


Fig.    28. 


^X. 


.  I'i^i      \   V   S    /. 


''■'iiiyiiii|i'i'iMiiiiiihii  "    r  ■'■■'■''■  rnwiii! 


Outlet,  secured  with  masonry  and  grating. 

may  be  covered  to  that  depth,  even  in  the  lowest  part  of  the 
land  to  be  drained,  though  it  is  sometimes  better  to  place  the 
drains  at  a  less  depth  for  a  short  distance,  than  to  incur  the  cost 
of  deepening  a  ditch  on  a  neighbor's  property  for  a  very  long 
distance. 

The    position   and    depth    of    the    outlet   being   established,    it 

*  For  want  of  space,  the    reasons  for  adopting   the  methods  herein  set  forth  are  not 
discussed.     They  are  those  which  experience  has  shown  to  be  the  best. 


98  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

should  be  permancntlv  built  up  with  brick  or  stone,  (as  repre- 
sented in  Fig.  28,)  the  work  being  done  solidly,  but  as  rudely  as 
mav  be  thought  proper.  The  ditch  below  this  outlet  must  be 
of  sufficient  depth  and  capacity  to  keep  it  always  free  from  ob- 
structions. 

Mains  and  Sub-Mains. — Having  procured  substantial  stakes 
about  eighteen  inches  long,  stake  out  the  main  drain  from  the 
outlet  through  the  principal  depression  of  the  land,  and  if  the 
ground  slope  in  other  directions  than  toward  this  depression,  or  if 
there  be  a  broad  valley  with  sloping  land  at  each  side,  stake 
other  lines,  connecting  with  the  first,  and  running  at  the  bottom 
of  the  various  slopes,  or  in  the  middle  of  the  secondary  depres- 
sion, so  arranged  that  thev  shall  have  a  uniform  descent  tor  their 
whole  distance.  The  proper  arrangement  of  these  collecting 
drains  requires  more  skill  and  experience  than  any  other  branch  of 
the  work,  as  on  their  disposition  depends,  in  a  great  measure,  the 
economy  and  success  of  the  undertaking. 

Lateral  Dr.^ins. — Having  so  arranged  the  mains  and  sub- 
mains  that  water  flowing  down  the  various  slopes,  in  the  line  of 
steepest  descent,  would  reach  them  without  materially  changing 
its  course,  stake  out  parallel  lines,  forty  feet  apart  (the  first  line 
being  twenty  feet  from  the  boundary  of  the  land  to  be  drained) 
running  directly  down  the  slopes  in  the  lines  of  their  steepest 
descent,  or  as  nearly  so  as  is  consistent  with  tolerable  simplicity 
of  arrangement,  and  connecting  with  the  main  lines  at  their  feet. 
The  stakes  which  indicate  the  points  at  which  the  laterals  strike 
the  main  lines,  may  be  marked  so  as  to  be  easily  recognized  as 
indicating  these  points,  and  the  original  stakes  of  the  main  lines 
may  be  taken  up  and  reset  at  points  mid-way  between  the  laterals, 
or  at  shorter  distances,  if  necessary.  On  the  lateral  lines,  they 
should  be  at  uniform  distances;  on  the  main  lines,  they  should  be 
as  nearly  so  as  possible. 

Mapping. — Commence  at  the  lower  end  of  the  main  line  and 
mark  the  stakes  consecutively  y/,  Aa^  Ah^  Ac^  etc.  Then,  sup- 
posing sub-mains  to  unite  with  the  main  line  at  stakes  b  and  f, 
mark   the   stakes   of  these   Ab  \^  Ab  2,   Ab  3,   etc  ;    Ac  i,   Ac  2, 


DRAINAGE. 


99 


,     ,    .     ,        ^     Ab  \    Ab  \    Ah  \ 
yf^  3,  etc  ;   and    their   laterals    — r~i~T~i   ~3~'    ^^'^'•>    ""'^•'^    ^^^ 
stakes  of  all  the  drains  are  so  marked  as  to  be  clearly  designated. 
(See  map,  Fig.  29.) 

Fig.  29. 


M»p  of  a  ten-acre  field,  showing  the  conformation  of  the  land;  the  arrangement  of  the  drains  and  sU» 
basins  j   and  the  method  of  marking  the  stakes.    Scale  l6o  fc«t  to  I  inch. 


100  HANDY -BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

Next,  survey  the  boundaries  of  the  land,  and  all  of  the  lines, 
and  note  the  position  of  each  stake  on  the  map,  having  reference 
to  some  permanent  landmarks,  so  that  the  exact  position  of  any 
point  of  the  dra'ns  mav  at  anv  future  time  be  found,  in  order  that 
repairs  and  alterations  mav  be  made  without  loss  of  time  in  hunting 
for  lines  whose  exact  location  is  forgotten.  Such  a  map  of  drains, 
which  are  entirely  hidden,  is  always  satisfactory  and  often  useful. 

Levels. — Except  on  land  which  has  a  rapid  descent,  drains 
should  be  laid  with  more  accuracy  as  to  the  depth  than  is  possible 
by  the  aid  of  the  eye  alone,  and  in  order  to  do  this,  the  elevation 
of  the  ground  at  each  stake  should  be  measured  and  recorded. 
First,  drive  in  a  grade  stake  (a  peg  eight  or  ten  inches  long)  at  the 
side  of  each  stake,  until  its  top  is  nearly  even  with  the  surface 
of  the  ground;  then  imagine  a  horizontal  plane  above  the  ground, 
at  such  height  as  will  be  abo\e  the  highest  grade  stake  of  the 
whole  system  of  drains,  and  by  the  aid  of  a  leveling  instrument, 
such  as  is  used  by  railroad  surveyors,  ascertain  the  distance  from 
the  imaginary  plane,  down  to  the  top  of  each  crade  stake,  and 
mark  it  in  pencil,  near  its  proper  stake  on  the  map.  This  will 
give  perfect  data  from  which  to  compute  the  depth  at  which  the 
tiles  are  to  be  laid,  or  the  grade  of  the  drains. 

On  nearly  level  land  this  process  is  indispensably  necessary, 
while  its  importance  diminishes  as  the  surface  inclines  more 
steeply  ;  where  the  fall  is  as  much  as  one  foot  in  fifty  feet,  an 
ordinary  carpenter's  level  will  do  sufficiently  accurate  work  ,  and 
on  steeper  slopes  the  eye  is  a  sufficient  guide.  Generally,  how- 
ever, the  main  drains  (having  less  fall)  should  be  very  accurately 
leveled  ;  and  the  leveling  of  the  whole  tract  is  in  all  cases  satis- 
factory, and  is  essential  to  perfect  drainage,  while  its  cost  is 
trifling,  as  it  may  be  done  by  the  surveyor  at  the  time  of  mapping 
the  lines. 

Grading. — The  proper  adjustment  of  the  grades  on  which 
the  tiles  are  to  be  laid,  is,  by  far,  the  most  important  question 
connected  with  draining.  Not  only  must  wc  make  sure  that  the 
outlet  ii  lower  than  the  head  of  the  drain;  it  is  necessary  that 
the    whole    line    pursue   a    well-regulated    descent,    and   equally 


DRAINAGE.  101 

necessary  that  every  single  tile  be  placed  at  the  precise  depth  re- 
quired to  bring  it  into  line  with  those  above  and  below  it  (except 
when  the  rate  of  fall  is  purposely  changed).  It  has  been  well 
said  that  "  the  luorst  laid  tile  is  the  measure  of  the  goodness  and 
permanence  of  the  luhole  drain^  just  as  the  weakest  link  of  a  chain 
is  the  measure  of  its  strength."*  No  tile  should  be  so  placed  as 
to  offer  an  impediment  to  the  even  flow  and  velocity  of  the 
current  which  reaches  it  from  the  tile  above.  The  fall  of  a 
drain  should  not  decrease  in  velocity  as  we  proceed  toward  the 
outlet,  lest  particles  of  soil,  (technically  called  silt^  which  are  car- 
ried along  by  the  rapid  flow,  be  deposited  by  the  slower  current 
and  obstruct  the  drain,  f 

Above  all,  should  undulations  and  irregularities  be  avoided. 
Draining  is  pre-eminently  worth  doing  well,  if  worth  doing  at  all. 
The  cost  of  tile,  and  the  labor  of  digging  and  refilling  the 
ditches,  constitute  the  chief  expense  of  draining,  and  it  is  the  most 
improvident  sort  of  "  penny-wisdom"  to  economize  in  the  item 
of  precision.      One  ill-laid  tile  in  a  main  drain  may  render  useless 

Fig.  30. 


Defective  Grade,  resultiag  from  Uniform  Depth. 

five  thousand  whose  outlet  lies  through  it.  Drains  must  not  be 
laid  at  a  uniform  depth  from  the  surface,  but  on  a  straight  line  of 
descent  at  the  proper  general  depth.  Figure  30  shows  a  drain  in 
uniform  depth,  and  the  line,  a  c,  passing  through  it  shows  how  it 
deviates  from  the  proper  inclination  ;  at  the  point  d  the  tile  would 
be  filled  with  "  dead  water,"  and  might  soon  be  obstructed  with 
silt.  By  aid  of  the  levels  taken  at  the  grade  stakes,  the  proper 
depths  to  be  given  at  these  points   may  be  readily  computed  and 

*   Talpa,  or  the   Chronicles  of  a  Clay  Farm. 

f    Under   the   head    of   "Silt    Basins,"    will    be  found   directions    for    managing    this 
change  of  grade  when  necessary  to  be  made. 


102 


II  A  N  D  Y  -  B  0  0  K    OF    HUSBANDRY 


marked  on  the  stakes,  and,  for  the  distance  at  which  the  rate  of 
fall  is  unchanged,  the  line  of  tiles  should  be  a  straight  line,  lying 
at  the  computed  distance  below  those  stakes. 

The  computation  may  be  made  as  shown  below.  For  illus- 
tration we  take  the  first  three  spaces  of  the  main  drain  (J)  on 
our  map  (fig.  29). 

Note  that  the^r.f/  column  represents  the  marks  on  the  stakes  ; 
the  second  is  the  measured  distance  between  the  stakes  ;  the  third 
the  total  descent  of  one  hundred  feet  of  drain,  (eight-tenths  of  one 
foot  and  six-tenths  of  one  foot  per  one  hundred  feet  ;)  the /iurth, 
the  amount  of  fall,  at  this  rate,  from  stake  to  stake  ;  the  sixth^  the 
recorded  grade  at  each  stake.  The  first  figure  of  the  fifth  repre- 
sents the  recorded  grade  of  the  floor  of  the  outlet,  (21 .7  I,)  and  by 
subtracting  from  this  the  fall  between  ^  and  yfa^  (.34,)  we  ob- 
tain the  grade  of  the  drain  at  the  latter  stake,  (21.37  ;)  subtracting 
from  this  the  next  fall,  (.36,)  we  have  the  grade  at  Jh^  etc.  ;  then, 
by  subtracting  the  figures  in  the  sixth  from  those  in  the  Jifth,  we 
have  in  the  seventh  the  depth  of  cutting  at  each  stake. 

FORM    OK    COMPUTATION    FOR    DEPTH    OF    DRAIN    BELOW    TOPS    OF    GRADE    STAKES. 


No.  of 
Stake. 

Distance 
bi-twccn 
Stakes. 

Fall,  (in  feet  and  deci- 
mals of  a  foot.) 

Depth  below  Imaginary 
Pliine. 

Depth  of 
Drain. 

Per  100  ft. 

Between 

Stakes. 

To  the  Drain. 

To  the  top  of 
grade  stake. 

A. 
Aa. 
Ab. 
Ac, 

42  feet. 
45  fi-et. 
38  feet. 

0.80 
0.80 
0.60 

0.34 
0    36 
0.23 

21  .71 

21.37 
21     0! 
20.78 

18     21 
18.02 
17.14 
16.92 

3.50 

3-35 
3.87 
3.S6 

For  want  of  space,  in  the  map  on  page  lOi,  only  such  points 
have  been  marked  with  letters  and  grades  as  are  necessary  to  illus- 
trate the  text. 

The  least  rate  of  fall  which  it  is  prudent  to  give  to  a  drain,  in 
using  ordinary  tile,  is  2,5  feet  in  1,000  feet,  or  3  inches  in  loO  feet, 
and  even  this  requires  very  careful  work.*      A  fall  of  6  inches  in 

*Some  of  tlic  drains  in  the  Central  Park  have  a  fall  of  only  one  inch  in  one  hun- 
dred feet,  and  they  work  perfectly;  but  they  are  large  mains,  laid  witli  an  amount  of  care 
and  with  ccrtiiin  costly  precautions,  (including  very  precisely  graded  wooden  floors,) 
which  could  hardly  be  expected  in  private  work. 


DRAINAGE. 


103 


Fii 


100  feet  is  recommended  whenever  it  can  be  easily  obtained — not 
especially  as  being  more  effective,  but  as  requiring  less  precision 
and  expense. 

Digging  the  Ditches. — It  is  not  necessary  that  a  ditch  foi 
tile-draining  should  be  more  than  four  inches  wide  at  the  bottom, — 
only  wide  enough  to  allow  the  workman  to 
stand  with  one  foot  in  front  of  the  other, — and 
if  it  widens  to  twenty  inches  at  a  height  of  four 
feet  from  the  bottom,  he  will  have  room  enough 
to  work  in.      Soils  which  are  tolerably  retentive 

will  stand  at  this  ano-le  durins: 

the  short  time  that  ditches  need 

remain    open.       If  inclined  to 

cave  in,  the  weaker  places  may 

be  supported  by  boards  braced 

against  the  opposite  side.    (Fig.   f'g-  31.— Bracing  the  sides 

in  soft  lanJs. 
31-) 

For  four-foot  drains,  stretch  two  lines,  parallel 
to  each  other,  twenty  inches  apart,  leaving  the 
stakes  at  a  distance  of  two  or  three  inches  from 
one  side  of  the  inclosed  space.  Then,  with  an 
ordinary  spade,  cut  the  lines  neatly,  remove  the 
surface  soil,  and  throw  it  on  the  staked  side  of  the 
line.  Dig  the  ditch  to  a  depth  of  three  feet, 
throwing  the  lower  soil  on  the  bank  opposite  to 
that  on  which  the  surface  soil  has  been  placed. 
Now,  take  a  narrow  ditching  spade.  Fig.  32,  four 
inches  wide  at  the  point,  and  dig  down  opposite 
the  stakes  to  the  depth  marked  thereon.  The 
depth  may  be  measured  by  an  instrument  simi- 
lar to  that  represented  in  Fig.  ^^.  Having  reached 
this  point,  set  up  at  each  of  two  or  more  of  the 
stakes  a  "  boning-rod,"  seven  feet  long,  Fig.  34, 
Fig.  33._Measuring  fastening  it  in  place  by  laying  two  bits  of  board 
^'*^'  across  the  drain,  holding  the  boning-rod  between 

them,  and   held  in  place  by  stones  or  earth  laid   on  their  ends. 


104 


HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 


The  line  of  sight  taken  across  the  tops  of  two  of  these  boning-rods 
will  be  exactly  seven  feet  above  the  line  of  the  bottom   of  the 
drain,  and  a  "plumb-rod"  (which  is  a  boning-rod  with 
a  line  and   plummet  by  which   to  place  it  perpendicu- 
larly)  will    have   its   cross-head  exactly  in  a  line  with 
those  of  the  boning-rods,  when  its  foot  stands  on  the 
true  line  of  the  bottom  of  the  drain.      The  ditch  may 
\     I  be    dug    with    the    narrow  spade   to   within 
about  two  inches  of  the  desired  depth,  and 
it   may  then  be  trimmed  to  the  exact   line 
(with  the  aid  of  the  plumb-rod)  by  a  finish- 
ing scoop.    Fig.    35.      The  position  of  the 
laborer  in  the  narrow  ditch,  and  the  mode 
of  using  the  scoop,  are  shown  in  Fig.  ^6. 

As  the  laving   of  the  tile  should  be  com- 
menced   at   the    extreme    upper   ends   of   all 
drains,  so  that   no   dirt  may  be   washed  into 
them  ;   and,  as   the   finishing   of  the  bottom 
should    immediately   precede    the    laying   of 
the  tile,  lest  its  bottom   be  made  uneven  by 
water  flowing  over  it,  the  ditches  should  be 
first  roughly  finished  to  the  outlet,  (at  a  little 
1  I        less  than   the   final  depth,)  for  the  removal 
\j        of    the    water    during    the    work,    and    the 
Fig.  35.— Finish-  Kig.  34.— Bon-  boning-rods  should  first  be  set  at  the  upper 

ing  scoop.  ingRod.         ^^^^^         ^y^^^      ^^^      ^^^^      ^^     ^^jj       j^^^      ^^^^ 

change,  the  boning-rods  may  be  set  at  intervals  of  from  80  to  120 
feet,  as  the  sighting  may  be  accurately  done  at  this  distance.  Of 
course,  a  rod  must  be  set  at  each  point  at  which  the  fall  changes. 
The  manner  of  sighting  over  the  boning-rods,  and  the  inter- 
mediate plumb-rod,  is  shown  in  Fig.  37. 

If,  by  mistake,  the  bottom  is  dug  out  too  deeply,  the  earth 
with  which  it  is  filled  up  to  the  proper  grade  must  be  beaten 
solid. 

Tiles — Kinds  and  Sizks. — There  are  various  forms  of  tiles 
in  use  in   this   country — known  as    "  round,"    "  sole,"    "  horse- 


DRAINAGE. 


105 


shoe,"  etc.,  but  it  is  not  proposed,  here,  to  discuss  their  compara- 
tive merits.      Experience,  in  both   public  and  private   vv^orks,   in 


Fig.  36. — Position  of  Workman  and  Use  of  Finishing  Scoop. 

this  country,  and  the  cumulative  testimony  of  English  and  French 
engineers,  have  demonstrated  that  the  only  tile  which  it  is  eco- 
nomical   to    use,    are   the    best  that   can  be   found  ;    and   that   the 


~T?^ 


Fig    37- — Sighting  by  the  Boning  Rods. 

[/4  and  C  are  theboning-rods.  5  is  the  plumb-rod.  A^  B,  C,  is  the  line  of  sight  (7  feet  above  the 
grade).  7',  y,  is  the  line  of  the  bottom  of  the  drain,  which  will  be  correct  when  the  plumb-rod, 
standing  upon  any  point  of  it,  has  the  top  of  its  cross-head  in  the  line  of  sight,  A.  B,  C] 

best,  thus  far  invented — much  the  best,  is  the  "  pipe  and  collar," 
(Fig.  38,) — or  round  tiles  ;  and  these  are  unhesitatingly  recom- 
mended for*  use  in  all  cases.  Round  tiles  of  small  sizes  should 
not  be  laid  without  collars,  as  the  ability  to  use  these  Vvith  them 
constitutes  their  chief  advantage.  They  hold  them  perfectly  in 
place,  prevent  the  rattling  in  of  loose  dirt  in  laying,  and  give  twice 
the  space  for  the  entrance  of  water  at  the  joints.  A  chief  ad- 
vantage of  the  larger  sizes  is,  that  they  may  be  laid  on  any  side 
and  thus  made  to  fit  closely,  while  the  shrinking  of  the  top  of  the 
sole  tiles  (from  more  rapid    drying   in  manufacture)   makes    it    ne- 


106  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

cessarv  to  trim  the  ends,  to  make  even  a  tolerable  joint.  The 
usual  sizes  of  these  tiles  are  i^  inch,  2]  inches,  and  3J  inches 
in  interior  diameter.  Sections  of  the  2]  inch  make  collars  for  the 
1^  inch,  and  sections  of  the  3!  inch  make  collars  for  the  2]  inch. 
The  3^-inch  size  does  not  need  collars,  as  it  is  easily  secured  in 
place,  and  is  only  used  where  the  flow  of  water  would  be  sufficient 
to  wash  out  any  slight  amount  of  foreign  matters  that  might  enter 
at  the  joints.  When  collars  cannot  be  conveniently  procured,  an 
excellent  substitute  for  them  mav  be  cheaply  obtained  from  any 
tinsmith,  in  the  form  of  strips  of  refuse  zinc,  galvanized   iron, 


Fig.  38. — Pipe  Tile  and  Collar,  and  the  same  as  laid. 

or  tlnplate  from  i^  to  2  inches  wide.  I  have  had  such  made  by 
a  tinsmith  in  Newport,  for  a  cost  of  8c.  per  lb. — averaging  per- 
haps, $3  per  thousand.  Thev  are  easily  formed  to  the  shape  of 
the  tile  bv  being  bent  over  a  round  stick.  If  used  with  "sole" 
tiles  (those  having  a  flat  side  to  stand  on)  they  need  be  only  long 
enough  to  form  a  saddle  over  the  top. 

The  sizes  of  tiles  to  be  used  is  a  question  of  consequence.  In 
England,  i-inch  pieces  are  frequently  used,  but  i]-inch  tiles*  are 
recommended  for  the  smallest  drains.  Beyond  this  limit,  the  pro- 
per size  to  select  is,  the  smallest  that  can  convey  the  water  which 
will  ordinarily  reach  it  after  a  heavy  rain.  The  smaller  the  pipe, 
the  more  concentrated  the  flow,  and,  consequentlvj  the  more 
thoroughly  obstructions  will  be  removed,  and  the  occasional 
flushing  of  the  pipe,  when  it  is  taxed  for  a  few  hours  to  its 
utmost  capacity,  will  insure  a  thorough  cleansing.  No  inconveni- 
ence can  result  from  the  fact  that,  on  rare  occasions,  the  drain  is 
unable,  for  a  short  time,  to  discharge  all  the  water  that  reaches  it; 

*  Taking  the  ditfercnce  of  friction  into  consideration,  i^-inch  pii'cs  have  lully  twice 
the  discharging  capacity  of  i-inch  pipes. 


DRAINAGE.  107 

and  if  collars  are  used,  there  need  be  no  fear  of  the  tile  being 
displaced  by  the  pressure.  An  idea  of  the  drying  capacity  of  a  i^- 
inch  tile  may  be  gained  from  observing  its  xvetthig  capacity,  by 
connecting  a  pipe  of  this  size  with  a  sufficient  body  of  water, 
at  its  surface  and  discharging,  over  a  level  dry  field,  all  the  water 
that  it  will  carry.  A  i^-inch  pipe  will  remove  all  the  water 
that  would  fall  on  an  acre  of  land  in  a  very  heavy  rain,  in  24 
hours — much  less  time  than  the  water  would  occupy  in  getting  to 
the  drain  in  any  soil  which  required  draining  ;  and  tiles  of  this 
size  are  ample  for  the  draining  of  2  acres.  In  like  manner,  21- 
inch  tile  will  suffice  for  8  acres,  and  3|^-inch  tile  for  20  acres. 
The  foregoing' estimates  are,  of  course,  made  on  the  supposition 
that  only  the  water  which  falls  on  the  land,  (storm  v/ater,)  is  to 
be  removed.  For  main  drains,  when  greater  capacity  is  required, 
two  tiles  may  be  laid,  (side  by  side,)  or,  in  such  cases,  the  larger 
sizes  of  sole  tile  may  be  used,  being  somewhat  cheaper.  Where 
the  drains  are  laid  40  feet  apart,  about  1,000  tiles  per  acre  will  be  re- 
quired, and,  in  estimating  the  quantity  of  tile  of  the  different  sizes 
to  be  purchased,  reference  should  be  had  to  the  foregoing  figures  : 
the  first  2,000  feet  of  drain  or  less  requires  a  collecting  drain  of  \\- 
inch  tile  ;  the  water  from  more  than  2,000  and  less  than  7,000  feet 
may  discharge  into  2^-inch  tile  ;  and  for  the  outlet  of  from  7,000 
to  20,000  feet,  3^-inch  tile  may  be  used.  Collars,  being  more  sub- 
ject to  breakage,  should  be  ordered  in  somewhat  larger  quantities. 

Laying  Tile. — There  is  a  tool  made  for  laying  Fig.  39. 

pipes  and  collars,  but  it  is  recommended  that  they 
be  carefully  laid  by  hand,  a  process  which,  though 
somewhat  difficult  in  narrow  ditches,  is  not  impos- 
sible, and  is  much  more  satisfactory.  The  tiles, 
each  having  a  collar  passed  over  the  end,  should  be 
placed  along  the  side  of  the  ditch,  within  easy  reach 
of  a  man  standing  in  the  bottom.  He  commences 
at   the   upper   end   of  the   ditch,  and    walks    back-   „.  ,  ^    ^ 

'  r^  '  Pick  for  dressing  and 

ward  as   the  work   proceeds.      The  first  tile  is  laid      pertor^fng  "le- 
with  the   collar  on  its  lower  end,  and    with  a    flat    stone  or    bit 
of  broken  tile  fitted  closely  against  the   upper  end.      The   collar 


108 


II  A  N  D  Y  -  B  0  0  K    OF    n  U  S  B  A  N  D  R  Y  . 


is  then  slipped  along  until  only  one-half  of  its  length  is  under  the 
tile.  The  next  tile  has  its  nose  inserted  in  the  unoccupied  half 
of  the  collar,  and  one-half  of  its  other  collar  is  drawn  forward 
to  receive  the  next  tile — and  thus  to  the  lower  end  of  the  drain. 
The  trimming  of  the  ends  of  the  tile,  and  the  perforations  in  the 
tiles  of  main  drains  to  admit  the  laterals,  arc  made  with  a  pick 
(Fig.  39).  To  make  a  hole  in  the  tile,  use  the  pointed  end  of 
the  pick,  chipping  around  the  circumference  of  the  hole  until  the 
center-place  falls  in.  Collecting  drains  should  be  laid  a  little 
deeper  than  the  mouths  of  the  laterals  which  discharge  into  them, 

(allowance  for  this  having 
been  made  in  the  original 
grading,)  that  these  mav  be 
admitted  at  the  top  of  the 
main.       When    the   lateral 

Fig.  40.— Lateral  Drain  entering  at  Top.  and     thc   main   are     of    Cqual 

size,  the  best  way  to  make  the  connection  is  to  substitute  a  long 
pipe  in  place  of  the  collar,  making  a  hole  at  the  top  of  this,  to 
admit  the  lateral,  as  shown  in  Figs.  40  and  41. 

Silt  Basins. — In  new  drains  there  is  always  some  earthy 
matter  (silt)  in  the  water  which  flows  through  the  pipe, — the 
looser  earth  about  the  joints  is  carried  in,  in  small  quantities,  dur- 
ing the  earlv  action  of  thc  drain.  If  the  fall  of  the  drain  is 
irregular  this  silt  may  be  carried  in  suspension  in  the  water,  where 

the  current  is  rapid,  and  deposited 
.7  in  the  depressions,  or  more  level 
parts,  where  the  flow  is  sluggish, 
and  cause  the  obstruction  of  the 
^{M^^SSy^^  drain,  which  is  thereby  rendered 
^  worthless.  In  ordinary  soils,  the 
amount  of  silt  entering  at  the 
joints  of  the  drain,  will,  if  the  fall 
be  regular,  cause  no  inconvenience,  being  cither  all  carried 
out  at  the  mouth  of  the  drain,  or  deposited  throughout  its  whole 
length  to  a  depth  so  slight  as  to  be  of  little  or  no  consequence. 
If,  on  the  other  hand,  it  becomes  necessary  to  diminish  the  fall 


Fig.  41. — Sectional  View  of  Joint. 


DRAINAGE. 


109 


in   proceeding  vOvvard   the   outlet,   there  is   danger  that  the  silt, 

which    was    carried    by  the    more    rapid   stream    above,  will    be 

deposited  bv  the  slower  current  and  cause  a  stop-  ^'^-  ■♦-• 

page  of  the  drain.     In  the  drainage  of  the  Central 

Park,  this  danger  was  guarded  against  by  the  use 

of  silt-basins  at   all   points  at   which  the  fall  ot   a 

drain   (which   had    not   a  very  steep  descent,  say     %' 

two  or  three   feet   in  one   hundred   feet)  became   ^^ 

less  rapid.       The   silt-basin    is    a  vessel   (larger      ^^ 

than  the  tile  with  which  the  drain  is  laid)  extend- 

ino;  some  distance  below  the  grade  of  the  drain. 

'-'  °  silt-basin  made   of  six- 

It  has  the  effect  of  arresting  the  movement  of  the  inch  tiie. 

water,  thus  allowing  its  silt  to  settle  to  the  bottom,  and  has  suf- 
ficient depth  to  accumulate  that  which  will  probably  enter  it 
before  the   drain   commences  to 


run  clear  water.  For  a  lateral 
drain  of  small  caliber,  a  very  good 
silt  basin  is  made  by  placing  a 
single  six-inch  tde  on  end,  sink- 
ing; it  two-thirds  of  its  lenp-th 
below  the  floor  of  the  ditch,  and 
admitting  the  tiles  from  above 
and  below  at  opposite  sides.  It 
should  be  covered  with  a  well- 
fitting,  flat  stone,  and  should 
stand  on  a  stone  or  a  board — not 
on  the  earth,  ( Fig.  42.)  For 
|drains  of  somewhat  larger  size 
a  small  chamber  of  brick-work 
may  be  used,  (Fig.  43,)  and  for 
the  collection  of  the  mains  of 
several  systems,  it  is  satisfactory 

to     build    a    well     two     feet    in  P^ 

diameter,  ha\  ing  a  depth   of  two  .  "      v 

feet  below  the  bottom  of  the  out-  ^'S-  43— square  brick  silt-basin. 

let  drain,  and  reaching  the  surface,  with   a   good    cover    which 


no 


HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 


may  be  kept  locked,  (Fig.  44.)  When  large  sizes  of  vitrified 
earthenware  pipes  (ten  or  twelve  inches  in  diameter)  can  be  ob- 
tained, they  make  a  very  good  and  cheap  silt-basin,  answering 
very  well  for  the  collection  of  several  small  drains.  One  of 
these  is  shown  in  Figure  45. 

The  most  perfect  deposit  of  the  silt  will  be  secured  in  those 
basins  which  admit  and  discharge  the  water  on  the  same  level  ; 
but  a  difference  of  two  inches — sufficient  to  allow  the  action  of  the 
in-coming  drains  to  be  seen — is  so  satisfactory  to  the  eye  of  a 
proprietor,  that  it  may  well  be  tolerated  in  basins  which  are  built 
to  the  surface,  although  the  fall  tends  to  keep  the  water  in  the 
basin  agitated  to  its  bottom,  and  somewhat  interferes  with  the  de- 
posit of  silt.      Basins,  which  can  be  opened  at  the  surface,  should 

have  their  outlets  protected  by  coarse 
wire-cloth  or  upright  grating,  to  pre- 
vent the  entrance  of  rubbish,  which 
may,  by  accident,  reach  them. 

The  position  and  size  of  all  under- 
ground silt-basins  should  be  carefully 
noted  on  the  map.  In  the  event  of 
the  stoppage  of  any  drain,  (which  will 
P  be  indicated  by  the  wetness  of  the 
ground),  dig  down  to  the  first  silt-ba- 
sin below  the  break,  and  the  cause  will 
generally  be  found  to  be  the  accumu- 
lation of  silt  beyond  the  capacity  of 
the  basin,  and,  by  taking  up  a  few  tiles 
each  way  from  it,  until  they  appear 
free  from  deposit,  the  difficulty  may 
be  remedied  in  far  less  time  than 
would  have  been  necessary  if  the  silt 
had  been  allowed  to  deposit  itself 
through  a  long  stretch  of  the  drain.  If  the  soil  is  very  "  silty," 
(containing  layers  of  running  quicksand,)  the  ditch  immediately 
over  the  silt-basin  should  be  left  open  for  a  short  time  after  the 
drain  is  laid,  so  that,  by  simply  removing  the  stone  cover,  the 


F"ig.  44. — Silt-basin,  buJli  to  the  surface. 


DRAINAGE. 


Ill 


IL 


^3 


Fig.  45, — Silt-basin   of  vitrified 
pipe. 


deposit  of  silt  may  be  watched  and  removed,  until  it   ceases   to 
accumulate,  when  the  ditch   may  be  permanently  filled  in. 

Filling  in  the  Ditches. — As  fast  as 
the  tiles  are  laid,  they  should  be  securely 
covered,  in  order  that  they  may  not  be 
broken  by  stones  falling  in  from  the  banks,* 
and  that  their  position  may  not  be  dis- 
turbed by  the  water  running  in  the  ditch. 

The  best  covering  to  place  immediately 
over  the  tile,  is  the  heaviest  and  stiffest  clay 
from  the  ditch,  because  this  compacts  more 
readily  than  any  other  material,  and  allows 
less  of  its  finer  particles 
to  enter  the  tile.  It  is 
a  mistake  to  suppose 
that  there  is  the   least 

necessity  for  placing  a  porous  material  next 
to  the  tile.  Especially  should  sods,  or  other 
covering  which  contain  organic  matter,  be 
avoided,  as  affording  a  less  firm  packing 
around  the  tile,  and,  on  the  decay  of  the  or- 
ganic parts,  furnishing  loose  particles  to  enter 
the  joints.  Throw  in  fine  clay, — dropping  it 
gently  about  and  over  the  tiles,  until  they  are 
well  covered,  and  then  fill  in  to  a  depth  of  eight- 
een inches  with  clay.  This  filling  should  now 
be  trampled  down  with  the  feet,  and  then 
rammed  with  a  wooden  maul  (Fig.  46)  until 
quite  firm.  By  this  process,  the  tile  will  be 
securely  clasped  by  the  clay,  and  the  least  pos-** 
sible  amount  of  silt  will  enter  the  drain.  As 
to  the  entrance  of  the  water,  the  young  drainer 
Fig.  46.-Maui  for  ramming.  ^^^^  ^j^^  himsclf  no  troublc.  To  usc  the  lan- 
guage of  an  English  farmer,  "  experience  will  prove  that  you 
can't  keep  it  out,  and  it  is  astonishing  how  soon  the  water  will 
learn  how  to  get  in,  even  if  strong  clay  is  rammed  tight  over 
8 


112  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

the  pipes."  After  the  ramming  is  completed,  the  rest  of  the  ditch 
may  be  filled,  and  it  is  recommended  that  the  surface  soil,  which 
was  thrown  to  one  side,  be  mixed  with  the  subsoil  throughout  the 
entire  depth. 

Full  and  complete  directions  for  the  laying  out  and  making  of 
tile  drains,  such  as  would  suffice  for  any  farmer  contemplating 
the  improvement  may  be  found  in  books  on  the  subject,  whose 
cost  is  trifling  as  compared  with  the  cost  of  the  work,  and  no  one 
should  undertake  it  without  first  learning  all  that  is  to  be  learned 
from  books  on  the  subject. 

Underdraining  should  be  commenced  in  the  winter  time,  and 
very  early  in  the  winter.  When  the  ground  is  locked  fast  with 
frost,  and  when  it  is  impossible  to  do  any  out  of  door  work,  the 
farmer  has  leisure  for  such  a  careful  study  and  consideraticn  of 
the  question  as  is  necessary  to  any  successful  draining  operation  ; 
not  that  the  ditches  may  not  be  as  well  dug,  and  the  tiles  as  well 
laid  without  the  least  previous  consideration,  but  because  the 
work  is  very  expensive,  and  any  slight  mistake  made  in  the  ar- 
rangement of  the  drains,  may  result  in  its  being  done  incom- 
pletely, or  in  its  being  too  costly. 

I  have,  during  the  past  year,  drained  the  whole  of  Ogden 
Farm,  and,  of  course,  have  endeavored  to  do  the  work  as  thor- 
oughly and  as  cheaply  as  was  possible.  The  land  drained  (that 
which  constitutes  the  farm  proper  is  sixty  acres)  lies  over  the 
crown  of  a  hill,  and  all  but  five  or  six  acres  of  it  has  sufficient 
slope  for  easy  drainage,  without  their  being  a  very  great  fall  in 
any  part  of  it.  The  difference  of  elevation  between  the  highest 
and  the  lowest  point  is  about  fifty  feet  ;  and  these  points  lie  about 
a  half  a  mile  distant  from  each  other.  While  the  slope  of  the 
land  appears  to  the  eye  to  be  absolutely  uniform,  the  taking  of 
accurate  levels  demonstrated  that  there  were  considerable  inequali- 
ties, and  that  drains,  laid  according  to  the  very  best  judgment, 
founded  on  the  apparent  slope,  would  not  have  stood  in  proper 
relation  to  the  true  slope. 

The  course  pursued  was  the  following  :  The  whole  farm  was 
staked   off"  into  squares  of  one  hundred  and  sixty  feet  each,  and 


DRAINAGE.  113 

levels  were  taken  at  all  of  the  points  of  intersection,  showing  the 
elevation  of  those  points  above  an  imaginary  plain  underlying  the 
whole  farm.  This  was  all  shown  upon  the  map,  and  upon  the  same 
map  contour  lines, — or  lines  of  equal  elevation, — at  differences 
of  level  of  one  foot,  were  laid  on  in  a  different  color  from  the 
hnes  marking  the  squares.  In  the  accompanying  map  the  black 
lines  show  the  lines  defining  the  squares,  and  the  figures  at  their 
intersections  show  the  elevation  of  the  land  at  that  point  above 
the  imaginary-level  plain.  The  red  lines  show  the  lines  of 
equal  elevation  along  the  surface  of  the  land  ;  of  course  the  line 
of  steepest  descent  of  the  land  is  in  all  cases  at  right-angles  to 
these.      The  blue  lines  show  the  location  of  the  drains. 

Before  a  stroke  of  work  was  done  upon  the  land,  the  levels 
were  taken  at  the  intersections  of  the  black  lines,  and  these  and 
the  contour  lines  were  drawn  upon  the  map  ;  and  in  every  in- 
stance, in  advance  of  the  staking  out  of  the  drains  upon  the 
ground  their  location  was  drawn  upon  the  map  and  was  staked  on 
the  ground  directly  from  the  map.  This  insured  the  locating  of 
each  drain  in  what,  not  guessing,  but  actual  measurement,  showed 
to  be  the  right  place  ;  and  enabled  an  estimate  to  be  made  in 
advance  of  the  quantity  and  sizes  of  tiles  required,  and  of  the 
amount  and  cost  of  the  work  to  be  done. 

By  reference  to  the  map  it  will  be  seen  that  the  following  rules 
have  been  adhered  to,  so  far  as  circumstances  would  admit : — 

First. — Always  to  run  the  lateral  drains  parallel  to  each  other, 
and  down  the  deepest  descent  of  the  land  ;  in  some  cases  they 
are  not  parallel,  and  in  others  they  run  in  a  direction  slightly 
different  from  the  steepest  inclination — the  object  being  always  to 
harmonize  those  two  conflicting  requirements  so  as  to  produce 
the  best  average  result. 

Second. — To  lay  no  drain  on  such  a  course  that  water  running 
through  it  would  flow  more  rapidly  in  the  upper  than  in  the  lower 
part  of  the  drain  ;  it  has  been  necessary  in  this  matter  also 
to  deviate  somewhat  from  the  rule.  This  has  never  been 
done,  however,  except  where  the  reduced  rate  of  fall  was  suffi- 
cient to  insure   so  rapid   a  flow  as  to  carry  off  any  silty  matters 


114  handy-book:  of  husbandry. 

which  might  have  been  carried  by  the  more  rapid  stream  above. 
For  instance,  in  the  extreme  southwest  corner  of  the  farm  it  will 
be  seen  that  the  long  drains  of  the  main  system  were  not  carried 
directly  down  to  the  main  drain  near  its  outlet,  although  such  a 
course  would  have  allowed  the  size  of  the  tile  a  little  wavs  back 
from  the  outlet  to  be  somewhat  reduced.  The  reason  for  this 
was,  that  the  land  near  the  extreme  corner  is  so  nearlv  level  that 
there  would  have  been  danger  (in  carrying  the  drains  at  a  uniform, 
depth  directly  through  it )  that  silt,  accumulated  in  their  upper 
ends,  would  have  been  deposited  by  the  sluggish  flow  near  the 
main,  and  have  caused  the  obstruction  of  the  tiles.  To  avoid 
this,  the  collecting  drain,  starting  from  near  the  south  fence,  and 
running  in  a  northwesterly  direction,  was  made  to  cut  oft'  the 
longer  laterals  at  the  foot  of  the  steepest  inclination — the  land 
lying  between  this  collecting  drain  and  the  main  outlet  being  fur- 
nished with  drains  of  its  own,  laid  upon  a  uniform  though  slight 
fall. 

Third. — To  make  the  drains  four  feet  deep  and  forty  feet  apart  ; 
this  rule  has  been  adhered  to  as  rigidly  as  possible,  though  of 
course,  owing  to  slight  inequalities  in  the  surface,  it  was  at  times 
necessary  to  make  the  depth  a  little  more  or  a  little  less  than  four 
feet  for  a  short  distance,  and  it  was  also  necessary,  occasionally, 
as  in  the  field  north  of  the  barn,  to  deviate  a  little  from  the  par- 
allel line,  bringing  the  drains  less  than  forty  feet  apart  at  their 
lower  ends,  and  making  them  a  little  more  than  forty  feet  apart 
at  their  upper  ends.  In  a  few  instances  drains  have  been  run  up 
between  two  converging  lines  so  far  that  they  divided  a  space  of 
less  than  eighty  feet.  In  such  cases  these  intervening  drains 
were  made  somewhat  less  than  four  feet  deep  at  their  upper  ends, 
and  the  cost  of  digging  was  thereby  reduced. 

The  work  of  draining  was  commenced  in  the  autumn  of  1867, 
in  the  extreme  northwest  corner  of  the  farm.  Owing  to  the 
early  setting  in  of  severe  weather,  it  was  possible  only  to  dig  the 
main  outlet  ditch  which  runs  along  the  west  line,  and  to  com- 
plete the  northernmost  six  laterals.  As  soon  as  the  ground  was 
settled  in  the   spring  of  1868,  the  work  was  recommenced  with 


DRAINAGE.  115 

vigor,  and  the  severe  weather  of  the  month  of  December  found 
the  work  entirely  finished,  with  the  exception  of  a  few  laterals, 
and  the  main  drain  south  of  the  house.  These  would  also  have 
been  completed  but  for  a  mistake  in  sending  tiles,  which  made  it 
necessary  to  delay  the  work  until  the  ground  became  frozen,  and 
to  hazard  the  danger  that  the  caving  in  of  the  main  drain  in  spring 
would  so  choke  the  laterals  which  were  laid,  that  they  would  have 
to  be  taken  up  and  remade. 

Except  for  this  slight  accident  the  work  would  have  been 
entirely  completed  within  the  time  and  the  cost  originally  esti- 
mated. 

As  to  the  effect  of  the  work  as  shown  in  the  production  of 
better  crops,  it  is  hardly  possible  yet  to  speak  with  much  cer- 
tainty. The  spring  of  1868  was  very  wet,  and  it  was  impos- 
sible to  get  a  single  field  drained  in  time  for  it  to  be  planted  in 
season  for  the  best  growth.  Even  if  this  could  have  been  done, 
it  is  not  likely  that,  so  soon  after  the  construction  of  the  drains, 
their  action  would  have  been  sufficient  to  produce  a  very  marked 
effect  on  the  soil.  Therefore,  the  most  that  can  be  said  at  this 
time  is  with  reference  to  the  condition  of  the  land  in  the  matter 
of  readiness  for  cultivation,  and  this  can  be  best  illustrated  by  a 
reference  to  the  land  lying  north  of  the  dwelling-house.  This 
land,  as  will  be  seen  by  the  contour  lines  on  the  map  is  very  much 
the  most  level  tract  on  the  whole  farm.  Its  subsoil,  like  the 
subsoil  of  the  entire  farm  in  fact,  is  a  very  compact  blue  clay, 
intermixed  with  gravel  and  streaks  of  black  oxide  of  manganese, 
the  whole  forming  a  material  of  so  nearly  impermeable  a  char- 
acter that,  with  all  my  confidence  in  draining,  I  fully  expected 
that  it  would  be  several  years  before  any  very  marked  result  was 
produced.  Hitherto  this  farm,  though  beautifully  situated  on  the 
top  of  the  highest  hill  in  this  vicinity,  has  been  so  constantly  wet, 
except  in  seasons  of  extreme  drought,  as  to  have  baffled  every 
effort  to  make  it  tolerably  fertile,  and  to  disappoint,  if  not  to 
impoverish,  every  owner  and  every  tenant  who  has  ever  had  any 
thing  to  do  with  it.  It  has  long  been  known  in  the  vicinity  as 
"  Poverty  Farm,"  and  I  do  not  believe  that  the  average  estimate 


l\Q  nANDY-BOOK    OF    II  USB  AX  DRY. 

fixed  upon  it  by  the  best  farmers  in  the  township,  simplv  as 
agricultural  land,  would  have  given  it  even  one-fourth  of  the 
value  of  an  ordinarilv  good  farm.  In  fact,  one  of  the  chief  rea- 
sons for  its  purchase  was  the  belief  that,  while  it  could  be  bought 
for  a  low  price,  thorough  underdraining  must,  in  time,  make  it  an 
excellent  farm  ;  for  its  surface  soil  seems  capital,  and  its  subsoil 
is  such  as,  after  draining  and  deep  cultivation,  must  become  one 
of  the  best. 

That  this  opinion  was  a  correct  one  is  partly  demonstrated 
already  by  the  experience  with  the  field  to  which  allusion  was 
made  above, — that  north  of  the  house.  The  draining  of  this  land 
was  commenced  about  the  middle  of  September,  and  up  to  that 
time  (there  having  been  no  decided  drought  during  the  season)  there 
was  hardly  a  day  when  the  water  did  not  stand  on  its  surface,  and 
at  no  time,  after  a  heavy  rain,  could  it  be  comfortably  driven  over 
for  two  or  three  weeks.  The  draining  was  completed  on  this 
piece  by  the  middle  of  November.  On  the  26th  it  commenced 
raining  at  about  10  a  m.,  and  at  that  time  the  outlet  drain,  which 
passes  under  the  road  east  of  the  farm,  was  carrying  about  one- 
half  inch  depth  of  water  in  a  four-inch  pipe.  It  rained  very  hard 
until  5  P.  M.  when  it  cleared  off.  At  sunset  this  main  was  run- 
ning entirely  full.  At  noon  on  the  27th — the  next  day — plowing 
was  commenced  on  the  wettest  part  of  this  land,  and  the  ground 
was  amply  dry  enough  for  the  operation.  At  night-fall  the  tile  of 
the  main  was  running  only  about  one-quarter  full.  This  shows 
that  an  amount  of  water  which  would  have  prevented  our  going 
upon  this  land  in  its  undrained  state  before  the  next  June  at  the 
earliest,  found  its  way  iTntnediately^  even  through  the  compact  sub- 
soil, to  tile  drains  lying  four  feet  below  the  surface,  and  was 
carried  away  as  rapidly  as  could  possibly  be  desired  The  same 
rapid  removal  of  water  is  obtained  over  the  whole  farm,  and  the 
hope  is  yet  cherished  that  its  old  title  of  "  Poverty  Farm"  need 
never  be  applied  to  it  again. 

The  cost  of  the  work  of  drainmg  60  acres  m  the  very  best 
manner  has  been,  I  regret  to  say,  a  trifle  more  than  ^6,000 — just 
about  enough  more  to  pav  for  two  or  three  accidental  interrup- 


DRAINAGE.  117 

tions  to  the  work — leaving  the   actual  cost,  accidents   aside,  $ioo 
per  acre. 

Of  course  the  question  is  asked,  and  asked  generally,  I  think, 
with  a  good  deal  of  doubt  as  to  the  answer,  whether  this  expen- 
sive work  can  possibly  pay — whether  we  shall  ever  be  able  to  get 
back  a  hundred  dollars  per  acre  as  a  result  of  the  beneficial  influ- 
ence of  the  draining.  Suppose  we  do  not.  We  purchased  the 
farm  to  have  the  farm,  and  not  to  get  back  its  cost ;  and  we  did 
the  draining,  not  in  order  that  we  might  pocket  the  cost  of  the 
draining,  but  in  order  that  the  cost  might  be  profitably  invested. 
If  the  money  had  not  been  used  in  this  way  it  would  probably 
have  brought  a  return  of  6  per  cent,  on  a  safe  investment.  It  is 
now  invested  in  the  safest  possible  manner  and  if  the  result  of 
this  thorough  draining  of  land,  otherwise  good,  does  not  amount 
to  at  least  $6  per  acre,  it  will  be  remarkable.  My  own  impres- 
sion is  that  in  favorable  seasons  such  acres  as  are  well  cultivated 
will  bring  a  return  (ascribable  entirely  to  the  draining)  of  at  least 
$30  each.  And  in  addition  to  all  this  there  is  the  satisfaction  of 
knowing  that  when  plowing  day  comes  plowing  can  be  done,  and 
that  it  will  not  be,  as  it  hitherto  has  been,  postponed  for  a  month 
on  account  of  a  single  heavy  rain.  Probably  the  ability  to 
systematize  the  labor  of  the  farm  and  carry  on  its  various  opera- 
tions without  interruption  will,  of  itself,  be  worth  $6  an  acre  every 
year. 

I  have  gone  thus  particularly  into  a  description  of  a  purely  per- 
sonal operation  with  the  belief  that  there  is  no  sort  of  argument 
which  is  so  effective  with  readers  generally,  and  especially  with 
agricultural  readers,  as  one  that  is  based  on  actual  experiment  ;- 
and,  in  connection  with  the  map,  any  farmer  will  be  able,  from  the 
description  given,  to  form  a  better  idea  of  how  the  work  of  draining 
may  be  done,  and  of  its  extent  and  cost,  than  by  any  description  of 
a  purely  hypothetical  case. 

When  the  Ogden  Farm  drainage  was  commenced  the  best 
process  for  doing  the  work  and  the  best  means  were  those  de- 
scribed in  the  first  edition  of  my  work  on  draining,*  and  the  system 
♦"Draining  for  Profit  and  Draining  for  Health."     New  York,  O.  Judd  &  Co.    1867. 


118 


UANDT-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 


of  drains  on  the  northwest  field  of  the  farm  and  that  lying  west 
and  south  of  the  barnvard  was  made  according  to  the  directions 
therein  laid  down.  By  the  time  this  was  completed  the  very  im- 
portant inventions  of  Mr.  C.  ^V.  Boynton,  in  connection  with 
the  manufacture  of  draining  tiles,  enabled  me  to  adopt  a  much 
simpler  and  more  satisfactory  method,  which,  in  its  application  to 
the  rest  of  the  farm,  has  proven  itself  to  be  in  many  respects  a 
great  improvement.      And  I  would  gladly  pay  one-half  of  the  cost 

Fig.  47.  Fig.  48. 


of  the  original  work  to  have  it,  also,  done  in  the  same  manner. 
Mr.  Boynton's  improvement  consists,  first,  in  the  making  of  tiles 
of  the  best  quality  of  fire-clay,  two  feet  long  ;  and  second,  in  the 
use  of  "junction  pieces,"  which  are  short  tiles  of  the  size  of  the 
main,  having  a  branch  at  the  side  to  which  the  lateral  may  be 
attached. 

The  character  of  these  junctions,  and  the  manner  in  which 
they  may  be  used,  will  be  readily  understood  by  reference  to  the 
following  description  : — 

Formerly  the  best  way  to  admit  a  lateral  drain  into  a  main  was 
by  breaking  a  hole  (with  a  light  sharp-pointed  pick)  into  the  side 
of  one  of  the  tiles  of  the  main,  trimming  off  the  end  of  the  lateral 
so  as  to  make  it  fit  as  closely  as  practicable.  It  was  impossible 
Fig.  49.  in  this  way  to  make 

a  joint  that  would 
not  more  or  less  ob- 
struct the  flow  of  the 
stream. 

Boynton's  junc- 
tion, however,  (Fig. 
i^^  49,)  consisting  of  a 
short  tile  of  the  size 
of  the  main,  with  a  piece  of  the  size  of  the  lateral,  attached  to  it 
before  burning,  so  smoothly  moulded  that  the  stream  is  in  no  way 


DRAINAGE. 


119 


interrupted,  and  set  on  at  an  acute  angle,  so  that  the  force  of  the 
stream  flowing  from  the  lateral  drain  adds  to  the  velocity  of  the 
current  in  the  main,  entirely  obviates  this  difficulty,  which  was 
one  of  the  greatest  connected  with  the  old  style  of  work,  jvnd 
makes  the  drainage  of  land  even  less  uncertain  than  before. 

Among  the  minor  improvements  made  by  Mr.  Boynton,  the 
Bend,  (Fig.  50,  quarter  bend, 
and  Fig.  51,  one-eighth  bend,) 
for  turning  corners  in  drains, 
allows  the  stream  to  change 
gradually      and 


Fig.  so. 


Fig    Si- 


lts 


Quarter  Bend. 


One-eighth  Bend. 


smoothly,  and  with  much  less  retarding  effect,  than    with    the 

angular  turn  which  alone  was  possible  in  using  straight  tiles  with 

beveled  ends;  the  reducing  tile,  Fig.  52,  enables  Fig.  52. 

us   to   change   from    one   size   to   another  in  a 

straight  drain  without  making  an  abrupt  edge  in 

the  bore  of  the  drain  ;  and  the  glazed  outlet. 

Fig.  53,  with  a  grating  to  exclude  vermin, 

makes  an  excellent  and  durable  finish  at  the 

only  point  at    which   they  first  attack  the 

work. 


Reducing  Tile. 
Fig.  S3- 


Grated  Outlets  Glazed. 


LAND    DRAINAGE DETAILS    OF    THE    WORK. 

It  is  never  pleasant  to  confess  errors  ;  but  I  am  convinced,  by 
what  I  have  recently  seen,  that,  in  previous  writing  about  drain- 
age, I  have  been  mistaken  on  one  point.  That  is,  in  insisting, 
as  a  universal  rule,  that  the  whole  line  should  be  opened  from 
the  upper  end  of  the  lateral  to  the  lower  end  of  the  main,  and 
that  the  main  should  be  kept  open  until  the  tile-laying  and  cover- 
ing should  be  finished  in  all  its  laterals.  This  is  frequently,  but 
not  always,  true, — perhaps  it  is  not  even  generally  so. 

I  have  probablv  directed  the  laying  of  over  a  hundred  miles  of 
tile  drains,  and  I  have  always  tried  to  approach  as  nearly  as  pos- 
sible to  the  English  practice,  as  I  had  seen  it  described.  I 
have  bought  sets  of  English  draining-tools,  and  have  read  in 
English  agricultural   books  and    papers   about  the   way  in  which 


120  HANDY -BOOK    OF    nUSBAXDRY. 

the  work  is  done.  I  have  seen  pictures  and  diagrams  show- 
ing every  step  of  the  operation,  and  have  had  letters  from 
England  (in  reply  to  my  questions)  telling  me  precisely  what  they 
do  there.  I  have  tried  for  fifteen  years — with  scores  of  Irish 
ditchers — to  imitate  them,  and  have  finally  concluded  that  the 
statements  made  were  not  true,  and  that  the  pictures  drawn  were 
drawn  from  the  imagination.  I  could  in  no  way  get  my  ditches 
dug  without  ha\ing  the  men  tramping  on  the  bottorn,  and  making 
more  or  less  mud  according  to  the  amount  of  water, — and  this 
mud,  running  toward  the  main,  carried  a  sure  source  of  obstruc- 
tion with  it.  Hence,  I  have  always  recommended  that  the  whole 
line  be  opened  from  one  end  to  the  other,  before  a  tile  is  bid,  and 
that  the  tile-laying  be  commenced  at  the  upper  ends  of  the  laterals 
and  continued  down  stream^  so  that  no  muddy  water  would  run 
into  them,  as  would  be  the  case  if  the  tiles  were  laid  from  the 
lower  end  upward. 

I  am  still  convinced  that  in  very  wet,  soft  land,  or  where  the 
grade  is  so  slight  that  great  care  is  necessary  to  preserve  the 
uniformity  of  the  fall,  this  precaution  is  necessary.  But  wherever 
there  is  a  fall  of  as  much  as  one  foot  in  a  hundred  feet,  if  the 
bottom  is  ordinarily  firm,  the  best  plan  will  be  to  reverse  the  direction^ 
and  to  commence  laying  at  the  lower  end  of  the  drain — putting  in 
the  tile,  and  covering  it  up,  as  fast  as  the  digging  progresses. 

I  am  led  to  this  change  of  opinion  by  seeing  the  thing  dt)ne  by 
drainers  of  English  education.  What  I  could  not  understand  from 
description,  nor  attain  by  experiment,  is  made  clear  by  observation. 
In  the  digging  of  ordinary  drains  the  foot  of  the  workman  never  reaches 
to  within  less  than  a  foot  of  the  bottom  cf  the  ditch  ;  consequently, 
there  is  no  trampling  of  the  floor  of  the  drain,  and  no  formation 
of  mud.  What  water  may  ooze  out  from  the  land  (and,  as  but 
little  of  the  ditch  is  open  at  once,  the  amount  is  very  small)  has  no 
silt  in  it,  and  cannot  obstruct  the  tile  through  which  it  runs. 

I  will  try  to  describe  the  process  so  that  all  may  understand  it. 
We  will  suppose  the  main  drain  to  be  laid  and  filled  in,  junction 
pieces  being  placed  where  the  laterals  are  to  come  in,  and  that  we 
are  about  to  dig  and  lay  a  lateral  emptying  into  it. 


DRAINAGE. 


121 


I  A  line  Is  stretched  to  mark  one  S'de  of  the  ditch,  and  the 
sod  is  removed  to  a  spade's  depth  (15  Tches  wide)  for  a  length  of 
about  two  rods,  and  a  ditch  is  dug  abou'  18  inches  deep,  with  a 
narrow  bottom.  2.  A  ditching  spade,  (Fig.  54,  a,)  20  inches  long  in 
the  blade,  6  inches  wide  at  the  top,  and  4  inches  wide  at  the  point, 
— made  of  steel  and  kept  sharp, — is  forced  into  its  whole  length, 
and  the  earth  thrown  out.  Of  course  it  will  be  necessary  in 
very  hard  ground   to   do    some  picking,  but  it  is   surprising  to  see 

a         b         c  e  d 


Fig.  54 — Tile-draining  Implements. 

with  what  ease  a  man  with  an  iron  shank  screwed  to  the  sole  of 
his  boot  will  work  the  sharp  point  of  this  spade  into  an  obdurate 
hard-pan.  The  loose  earth  that  escaped  the  spade  is  removed  by 
a  scoop  (Fig.  54,  b)  4  inches  wide,  which  the  workman,  walking 
backward,  draws  toward  him  until  it  is  full,  swinging  it  out  to 
dump  its  load  on  the  bank.  In  this  way  he  gets  down  3  feet,  and 
leaves  a  smooth  floor  on  which  he  stands.  3.  Commencing 
again  at  the  end  next  to  the  main,  with  a  narrower,  stronger,  and 


122 


HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 


even  sharper  spade,  of  the  same  length  or  a  httle  less,  (Fig.  54,  c,)  4^ 
inches  wide  at  the  top  and  3  inches  at  the  point,  he  digs  out  as 
nearly  as  he  can,  another  foot  of  earth — he  facing  the  main  and 
working  back,  so  that  he  stands  always  on  the  smooth  bottom,  3 
feet  below  the  surface.  When  he  has  dug  for  a  length  of  2  or 
3  feet,  he  takes  a  snipe-bill  scoop,  (Fig.  54,^,)  only  3  inches  wide, 
and  using  it  as  he  did  the  broader  scoop,  removes  the  loose  earth. 
The  round  back  of  this  scoop,  which  is  alwavs  working  a  foot 
below  the  level  on  which  the  operator  stands  and  which  performs 
the  offices  of  a  shovel^  smooths  and  forms  the  bottom  of  the  trench, 
making  a  much  better  bed  for  the  tiles  than  it  is  possible  to  get 
if  it  has  to  be  walked  on,  and  regulates  the  grade  most  perfectly. 

4.  When  the  short  length  of  ditch  has  been  nearly  all  dug  out 
and  graded,  the  branch  on  the  junction  piece  of  the  tile  is  uncov- 
ered, and  the  tile  is  laid  by  the  use  of  a  "tile-layer,"  (Fig.  54,  ^,) 
operated  by  a  man  standing  astride  the  ditch  on  the  banks.  The 
collar  is  placed  on  the  end  of  the  branch  on  the  upper  end  of  the 
tile.  The  implement  lowers  the  tile,  (with  its  collar  in  place,)  and 
the  other  end  is  carefully  inserted  in  the  collar  on  the  branch. 
Then  the  end  of  the  second  tile  is  inserted  into  the  second  collar, 
and  so  on  until  nearly  all  of  the  graded  ditch  is  laid. 


f^'K-  55- — Opening  the  Dilch  and  Laying  the  Tiles. 

5.  The  most  clayey  part  of  the  subsoil  is  thrown  carefully  down 
on  the  tile  and  tramped  into  its  place, — all  but  the  collar  end  of 
the  last  tile  being  covered, — and  the  ditch  filled  at  least  half-full 
and  pounded. 

6.  Another  rod   or  two   of  the  ditch   is   opened,  dug  out,  laid. 


DRAINAGE.  123 

and  filled  in  as  above  described, — the  amount  opened  at  any  one 
time  not  being  enough  to  allow  the  accumulation  of  a  dangerous 
quantity  of  water.  If  there  is  any  considerable  amount  of  water 
in  the  land,  or  if  it  is  feared  that  it  may  rain  during  the  night, 
the  tile  is  left  with  a  plug  of  grass  or  straw,  which  will  prevent 
the  entrance  of  dirt. 

Fig.  55  gives  a  section  of  a  ditch  with  the  work  in  its  different 
stages.      The  tile  is  shown  in  section. 

And  now  for  the  result  : — 

Last  year,  after  the  draining  of  Ogden  Farm  was  completed,  I 
undertook  the  drainage  of  a  neiglibor's  land,  emplovins;  the  same 
gang  of  experienced  Irish  ditchers.  The  best  bargain  I  could 
make  was  for  one  dollar  per  rod  for  digging  and  back-filling  (tile 
laying  not  included).  The  best  men  earned  $3.50  per  da\', — the 
average  not  more  than  1^2.25.  Owing  to  the  lateness  of  the 
season,  the  work  was  suspended  until  this  year's  harvest  should 
be  completed. 

This  year  I  hired  a  gang  of  tile-drainers  from  Canada,  who  had 
English  experience.  They  work  precisely  as  above  described. 
The  price  paid  is  75  cents  per  rod  for  digging,  back-fillino;,  and 
tile-la\'ing  (for  the  whole  work  complete,  although  owing  to  the 
hard-pan^  much  picking  is  required).  The  best  man  among  them 
completes  seven  rods  per  day,  (v5-25,)  and  the  a\erage  is  fully 
five  rods  (33-75)-  The  amount  of  earth  handled  (owing  to  the 
narrowness  of  the  ditches)  is  less  than  one-half  of  what  it  was 
last  year,  and  the  work  is  done  with  a  neatness  and  completeness 
that  I  have  never  seen  equaled. 

What  these  men  are  doing  others  can  do  as  well,  and  I  am 
satisfied  that  in  simple,  heavy  clays  the  whole  work  of  digging  and 
tile-laying  can  be  done  for  less  than  50  cents  per  rod. 

While  tiles  are  much  the  best,  and  generally  the  cheapest  ma- 
terial that  can  be  used  for  making  underdrains,  there  are  many  parts 
of  the  country  in  which  they  cannot  be  obtained,  and  in  all  cases 
they  require  a  direct  outlay  of  money — a  process  against  which 
many  farmers  have  an  aversion.  For  these  reasons,  (and  some- 
times because  it  is  absolutely  necessary  to  get  rid  of  stones  which 


12-t  II  ANDY -BO  OK    OP    HUSBANDRY. 

are   not  needed   in   making  fences,)  it    is   often  desirable   to   make 
drains  with  other  materials. 


STONE     DRAINS. 

Stone  drains,  when  well  built,  may  last  a  very  long  time,  but 
they  are  not  so  reliable  as  tile  drains,  for  the  reason  that  they 
cannot  be  so  made  as  to  keep  the  water  flowing  through  them  in 
a  smooth  current,,  nor  so  as  to  entirely  prevent  it  from  flowing 
over  the  earth,  which  it  may  wash  up  and  deposit  where  it  will 
obstruct  the  channel.  They  are,  also,  more  liable  to  be  reached 
by  water  from  the  surface,  running  down  through  fissures  in  the 
soil — such  water  being  the  best  possible  destroyer  of  any  drain, 
stone  or  tile,  on  account  of  the  earth  it  carries  with  it. 

Contrary  to  the  general  idea,  stone  drains  are  usually  much  more 
costly  than  tile  drains  -,  they  require  a  much  wider  trench  to  be 
dug,  and  refilled,  and  it  frequently  costs  more  than  the  price  of 
the  tiles  to  lay  the  stones  properly,  after  they  have  been  deposited 
at  the  side  of  the  trench. 

Every  farmer  in  a  stony  region  knows  how  to  lay  a  stone 
drain,  with  an  "eye,"  "throat,"  or  "trunk,"  as  the  channel  for 
the  water  is  called,  but  there  are  two  important  principles  con- 
nected with  such  drains,  which  are  usually  not  known,  or  are 
disregarded. 

1.  A  stone  drain  should  never  form  a  part  of  a  system  of  which 
the  other  part  is  laid  with  tiles ;  because  if  the  stone  drain 
empties  into  the  tile  drain  it  will  be  \erv  likely  to  deliver  to  it 
so  much  sand  or  gravel  "  silt  "  as  to  obstruct  it,  while  if  a  stone 
drain  is  used  as  an  outlet  for  tile  drains,  it  will  greatly  lessen 
their  permanent  value  by  its  own  liability  to  become  closed. 

2.  No  porous  material — neither  small  stones,  straw,  sods,  brush, 
nor  shavings — should  be  placed  on  the  top  of  the  stones  forming 
the  channel.  It  is  not  hom  above  that  any  drain  should  receive 
its  water.  The  water  that  is  drained  away  from  a  saturated  soil 
always  rises  into  the  drain  from  below.  The  amount  flowing  in 
from  the  sides   is  hardly  worth  notice,  and  any  that  might  come 


DRAINAGE  125 

directly  down  from  the  surface  would  be  very  likely  to  bring 
with  it  matters  which  would  choke  the  channel — that  which 
rises  into  the  bottom  of  the  drain  is  as  clear  as  spring  water,  (is 
spring  water  in  one  sense,)  and  can  only  obstruct  the  drain  by 
washing  into  heaps  the  earth  that  it  flows  over  in  its  course 
throufrh  the  drain. 

o 

It  is  very  well  to  cover  the  stone-work  with  the  smallest  quan- 
tity of  shavings  or  leaves  that  will  prevent  the  earth  with  which 
the  trench  is  tilled  from  rattling  into  the  "  eye,"  but  this  should 
be  immediately  covered  with  the  stiffest  subsoil  at  hand,  which 
should  be  trampled  or  rammed  down  so  solidly  that  no  streams  of 
water  and  no  vermin  can  work  their  way  through  it.  Sods  make 
a  very  good  covering  when  they  are  first  laid,  but  thev  soon  decay, 
and  afford  the  best  possible  material  for  obstructing  the  drain. 
If  small  stones  are  to  be  used  at  all  they  should  not  be  placed 
over  the  drain,  where  they  can  only  do  harm  ;  but  below  it,  where 
they  protect  the  earth  against  the  action  of  the  stream,  and  al- 
low the  water  of  saturation  to  rise  freely  into  the  drain. 

The  different  methods  of  laying  stones  so  as  to  form  a  chan- 
nel are  too  well  understood  to  need  illustration,  and  the  selection 
of  one  or  another  must  depend  very  much  upon  the  character 
of  the  stone  to  be  had  for  the  purpose.  In  every  case,  they 
should  be  so  laid  that  thev  can  neither  be  undermined  by  the 
stream,  and  made  to  "cave  in,"  nor  be  forced  out  of  their  places 
by  the  weight  of  the  filling  above  them. 

If  the  chief  object  is  to  get  rid  of  a  large. amount  of  stone,  this 
may  be  best  accomplished  by  dig2;ing  very  wide  trenches,  wide 
enough  to  use  a  plow  for  loosenmg  the  ground  to  the  whole 
depth,  and  dumping  the  stones  in  from  a  cart,  merely  leveling 
them  off  within  one  and  a  half  or  two  feet  of  the  surface,  and 
packing  the  heaviest  soil  over  them.  In  a  very  large  drain  of  this 
sort,  the  water  will  always  find  a  passage,  unless  it  is  so  carelessly 
laid  that  surface  streams  flow  in. 

A  very  good  way  to  get  rid  of  useless  stone  walls  is  to  dig  a 
trench  at  one  side  of  them  and  throw  them  in — finishing  off  the 
top  as  above  directed. 


126  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

PLANK,   BRUSH,  AND    POLE    DRAINS. 

When  2-inch   planks  or  slabs  can  be  cheaply  procured,  a  good 

drain  may  be   made   by  cutting  the   bottom  of  the  ditch  so  as  to 

leave  a  shoulder  at   least  three   inches  on  each  side  as   shown   in 

Fig.    56,   and    lay  across — resting    on    the    shoulders — pieces    of 

Fig.  56.  plank  or  slab  sawed  to  the  proper  length, 

to  reach  from  one  side  of  the  ditch   to] 

the  other,  and  fitted  as  closely  as  possible 

;  at  their  edges.      For  the  smaller  drains — 

not  more  than  six  inches  across,  between 

-  the  shoulder,  common  hemlock  boards, 

one  inch  thick  will  suffice,  and  will  last 

for   a  long   time.      In  all   cases   the  wood   should   be   thoroughly 

soaked  before   laving,  so  that   it   will   not   be   necessarv  to  leave 

joints  to  allow  for  swelling.      In  a  clay  subsoil,  such  a  drain  would 

last  long  enough   to  be   economical.      In  quicksand  it  would  be 

good    for  nothing.      The   grain  of  the  wood   must  run   across  the 

ditch. 

If  a  ditch  is  filled  with  brush  (especially  cedar)  to  its  top,  com- 
mencing at  the  upper  end,  and  laying  the  butts  toward  the  mouth 
of  the  drain,  and  the  brush  then  pressed  down  as  closely  as  pos- 
sible, and  covered  with  well-compacted  earth,  it  will  make  a  very 
good  "  make-shift  "  drain — so  much  better  than  none  at  all,  as  to 
commend  itself  highly  to  those  who  cannot  afi'ord  to  make  stone 
or  tile  drains. 

Small  poles  laid  evenly  in  the  ditch,  with  just  enough  fine 
covering  to  keep  out  the  loose  dirt  of  the  filling  will  often  prove 
very  good. 

When  either  the  poles  or  the  brush  decay,  the  earth  itself  will 
often  preserve  the  channel  for  a  long  time. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

PLOWING,   SUBSOILING,   AND   TRENCHING. 

"  In  ancient  times,  the  sacred  plow  employed 

The  kings  and  awful  fathers  of  mankind  ; 

And  some,  with  whom  compared  your  insect  tribes 

Are  but  the  beings  of  the  summer's  day. 

Have  held  the  scale  of  empires,  ruled  the  storm 

Of  mighty  war,  and  then  with  unwearied  hand, 

Disdaining  little  delicacies,  seized 

The  plow,  and  greatly  independent  lived." 

Thomson. 

A  FEW  years  ago  a  "  Young  Farmer  "  in  England  wrote  to  the 
"London  Gardeners'  Chronicle  and  Agricultural  Gazette,"  asking 
information  concerning  the  "  Art  of  Plowing."  The  following 
was  the  reply  of  that  very  able  paper  : — 

"  The  niceties  of  this  subject  are  no  longer  of  the  importance 
"  they  once  possessed.  Well-drained  land  should  be  '  smashed 
"up' — that  is  the  proper  way  to  treat  it.  If  you  want  to  know 
"all  the  mysteries  of  the  subject,  as  it  used  to  be  practically 
"carried  out,  consult  'Steven's  Book  of  the  Farm.'  The  whole 
"vocabulary  of  this  once  tedious  subject  has  become  obsolete : 
"  in  place  of  gathering  up,  croiun  and  furrow  plowing,  casting  or 
'■'■  yokiiig,  or  coupling  ridges,  casting  ridges  zvith  gore  furroius, 
'■'■cleaving  down  ridges,  with  or  without  gore  furrows,  plowing 
"  two  in  two  out,  plowing  in  breaks,  etc.,  all  that  the  land  now 
"  needs,  in  order  to  efficient  cultivation,  is,  according  to  Mr. 
"  Smith,  of  Woolston,  a  'smashing  up;'  and  it  is  to  land  drainage 
"  as  permitting  a  deeper  rough  tillage  before  winter,  and  to  steam 
"  plows  and  steam  cultivators  as  enabling  it,  that  the  most  striking 
"lesson  of  recent  experience  in  land  cultivation  is  due." 

9 


128  HANDT-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

Plowing  has  the  following  objects: — 

1.  To  destroy  existing  vegetation. 

2.  To  loosen  the  soil  and  prepare  the  seed  bed. 

3.  To  allow  the  lower  parts  of  the  surface  soil  to  be  prepared 
for  the  better  use  of  plants  by  the  action  of  atmospheric  influ- 
ences. 

4.  To  deepen  the  surface  soil. 

5.  To  cover  manures,  green  crops,  or  dung. 

6.  By  a  combination  of  the  foregoing  efforts,  to  admit  air  and 
water  more  freelv  among  the  roots  ot  plants. 

The  first  and  the  fifth  of  these  objects  are  best  attained  by 
such  regular  turning  of  the  furrows  as  shall  completely  invert 
the  soil,  or  at  least  as  shall  turn  it  over  so  far  that  the  harrow 
will  leave  only  the  lower  soil  on  the  smoothed  surface. 

The  others  do  not  require  such  nicety  of  work,  and,  indeed, 
they  are  better  accomplished  bv  such  treatment,  as  will  more 
thoroughly  break  up  the  furrow. 

In  plowing  grass  land,  I  think  that  a  carefully  turned  flat  furrow, 
— that  is,  the  laving  of  the  grass  side  of  the  furrow-slice  flat  upon 
the  bottom  of  the  plow  track,  or  turning  it  completely  over  like  a 
board, — is  conducive  to  the  most  rapid  rotting  of  the  sod,  while 
it  renders  it  less  liable  to  be  torn  up  by  the  harrow,  which  at  the 
same  time  acts  more  uniformly  on  the  freshlv  turned  earth.  In 
turning  in  green  crops,  the  flat  furrow  has  the  same  advantage. 
In  plowing  in  farm-vard  manure,  however,  it  is  quite  as  advan- 
tageous,— perhaps  more  so, — to  mix  it  more  thoroughly  through- 
out the  whole  depth  of  the  plowed  soil  by  adopting  the  lap- 
furrow. 

The  chief  objections  to  the  flat-furrow  system  seem  to  be  that, 
with  a  gi\  en  amount  of  power,  the  plowing  cannot  be  so  deep  ; 
that  the  sod  is  less  broken  up  ;  and  that  less  air  is  admitted  among 
the  particles  of  the  soil.  These  objections  are  enough  to  con- 
demn the  practice,  except  for  the  accomplishment  of  the  two 
purposes  referred  to  above.  For  all  but  these  it  is  better  to  plow 
with  lap-furrows,  and  better  still  to  so  crush  the  furrow  in  plow- 
ing, that  it  is  not  turned  over  in  any  definite  shape  ; — simply  pul- 


PLOWING,    SUBSOILING,   AND   TRENCHING.         129 

verize  it  as  much  as  possible,  and  push  it  out  of  the  way,  to  make 
room  for  the  next  bite.  As  a  merely  mechanical  operation  the 
plowing  of  pure  sand,  which  it  is  impossible  to  turn  in  a  regular 
furrow,  affords  the  best  model,  and  any  arable  soil  would  be  im- 
proved by  being  made  as  fine  as  sand,  so  that  it  would  not  turn 
in  a  regular  furrow. 

The  English  use,  very  extensively,  an  implement  called  a 
grubber,  which  is  a  stronger  and  deeper  cultivator,  loosening  the 
soil  more  completely  than  any  plow  for  a  depth  of  6  or  8  inches, 
when  drawn  by  horses.  Its  teeth  project  forward  like  the  point 
of  a  plow,  so  that  their  action  is  more  upward  than  that  of  the 
harrow,  while  they  hold  better  to  the  ground. 

THE    KIND    OF    PLOW    TO    BE    USED. 

A  single  manufacturer  of  agricultural  implements  in  New  York 
city  advertises  over  a  hundred  varieties  and  sizes  of  plows,  and 
there  are  hundreds  of  other  large  manufacturers  and  dealers  in  the 
country  who  would  add  immensely  to  the  number  from  which  we 
may  select. 

In  choosing  a  plow  for  light  land  or  heavy  ;  for  sod  or  stubble  ; 
for  shallow  work  or  deep  ;  for  sand,  clay,  gravel,  or  plastic  mould, 
there  are  many  considerations  which  should  influence  us,  most  of 
which  are  familiar  to  all  practical  plowmen,  and  none  of  which 
are  so  well  defined  that  they  can  be  made  the  basis  of  any  estab- 
lished rule.  Lightness  of  draft  and  uniformity  of  work  are  the 
great  things  sought  after,  and  they  are  very  important  ;  but  some 
lightness  of  draft  may  be  very  well  sacrificed  to  completeness 
of  the  pulverization  of  the  furrow  slice,  and  uniformity — except 
in  plowing  grass  land — is  of  much  less  consequence  than  thorough 
breaking. 

In  all  the  investigations  that  have  been  made  concerning  the 
draft  of  plows,  from  the  time  when  President  Jefferson  submitted 
to  the  French  Institute  his  paper  on  the  true  shape  of  the  mould- 
board,  and  throughout  a  long  course  of  mathematical  philoso- 
phizing on  the  subject,  the  only  thing  of  universal  application  that 
can  be  said  to  be  established  as  a  rule^  is,  that  on  ground  in  which 


130  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

a  wheel  woulJ  not  be  clogged  up,  a  wheel  on  the  front  part  of 
the  beam  lessens  the  draft  of  all  plows,  and  makes  them  work 
more  casilv  generally.  After  the  world  has  been  supplied,  for 
three-quarters  of  a  centurv,  with  diagrams  and  formula?  on  the 
direction  in  which  the  furrow-slice  moves  over  the  mould-board, 
— all  of  which  prove  the  advantage  of  a  hollow  form,  so  regu- 
lated that  a  straight  edge  may  be  laid  across  any  part  of  it,  at 
right  angles  to  the  line  of  motion,  touching  at  all  points, — there 
comes  a  '*  convex  mould-board  "  plow,  (on  which  a  straight  edge 
so  placed  will  touch  only  at  a  single  point,)  which  is  claimed  to 
be  in  all  ways  superior,  and  which,  in  mv  hands,  has  certainly 
performed  very  satisfactorily  ;  and  the  "  cylinder"  plow,  on  which 
it  would  touch  at  only  two  points. 

This  is,  it  must  he  confessed,  a  humiliating  fact,  and  it  at 
least  shows  that  science  has  thus  far  failed  to  appreciate  all  of  the 
resisting  forces  which  come  into  action  in  the  process  of  plowing  ; 
and  it  conveys  to  the  farmer  the  intimation  that  he  should  attend 
even  more  to  the  completeness  with  which  a  fair  expenditure 
of  the  force  of  his  team  will  break  up  his  land  than  to  the  ease 
with  which  he  can  do  a  certain  amount  of  work.  It  is  not  quite 
true  that  the  hardest  plowing  does  the  most  good  ;  but,  as  above 
stated,  some  heaviness  of  draft  is  well  compensated  for  b^'  more 
complete  pulverization. 

In  making  a  selection  of  plows,  therefore,  we  can  hope  for  but 
little  aid  from  books,  and,  more  than  in  almost  any  other  depart- 
ment of  our  work,  must  depend  on  practical  experience  and 
a  judicious  obser\  ation.  Oh\iously,  that  plow  is  the  best  which 
will  do  the  work  as  It  ought  to  he  done  with  the  least  expenditure 
of  force.  Aly  own  experience  has  led  me  to  believe  that,  for 
light  work — not  more  than  seven  inches  in  depth — I  get  the  most 
complete  pulverization  that  is  possible  with  one  pair  of  horses,  from 
the  use  of  Holbrook's  stubble  plow,  No.  66,  or  of  Allen's  cylinder 
plow,  with  skim  attachment,  and  for  heavy  work,  with  a  strong 
double  team,  going  to  a  depth  of  nine  or  ten  inches,  from  the  Ames 
Plow  Company's  Eagle,  No.  25. 


PLOWING,    SUBSOILING,   AND   TRENCHING.        131 

The  skim  attachment  of  Allen's  cylinder  plow  cuts  off  about 
two  or  three  inches  of  the  land  side  of  the  furrow-slice,  and  folds 
it  over  on  to  the  furrow  side,  thus  lessening  the  weight  on  the 
mould-board.  It  helps  to  pulverize  the  furrow,  and  at  least  does  not 
increase  the  draft. 

Holbrook  has  a  plow  with  a  skim  attachment,  which  is  said  to  be 
an  excellent  tool,  but  I  cannot  speak  from  any  actual  experience 
■with  it. 

He  also  makes  a  "swivel"  or  "side-hill"  plow,  which  is  very 
highly  recommended  for  plowing  on  hill-sides,  or  on  level  land. 
By  turning  the  furrow  always  in  the  same  direction  it  obviates  the 
necessity  for  leaving  dead  furrows. 

Among  the  other  plows  which  I  have  found  by  experience  to  be 
admirably  adapted  to  all  kinds  of  work,  in  heavy  and  in  light  soils, 
are  Smith's  patent  cast-steel  plows,  made  by  the  Collins  Co.,  near 
Hartford,  Conn. 

The  manufacturers  claim  for  this  plow  the  following  advantages: — 

"  ist.  It  is  the  only  plow  yet  produced  which  will  invariably 
**  scour  in  any  soil, 

"  2d.  It  is  now  a  well-established  (act  that  it  will  last  from  three 
"to  six  times  longer  than  any  other  plow. 

"  3d.  It  can  easily  be  demonstrated  that  it  draws  lighter  than  any 
"other  plow  cutting  the  same  width  and  depth  of  furrow. 

"  4th.  It  will  plow  in  the  most  perfect  manner  at  any  desired  depth, 
"  between  three  and  twelve  inches,  which  is  a  third  larger  range  than 
"  is  possessed  by  most  other  plows,  while  in  difficult  soils  none  other 
"  can  be  run  deeper  than  six  or  eight  inches. 

"  5th.  The  same  plow  works  perfectly  not  only  in  stubble  and  corn 
"ground,  but  in  timothy  and  clover  sod. 

"6th.  In  every  part  it  is  made  of  the  best  material,  and  no 
"pains  are  spared  to  produce  a  uniformly  good  and  merchantable 
"article." 

The  same  firm  has  brought  out  a  plow  without  handles,  with  Volk- 
man's  "Guide," — a  plow  that  holds  itself  to  its  work,  and  returns 
to  it  when  thrown  out  by  stones  even  better  tlian  it  could  be  held 
and  replaced  by  a  plowman.     I  consider  these  steel  plows  one  of  the 


132  HANDY-BOOK   OF   HUSBANDRY. 

greatest  improvements  that  I  have  adopted.  The  plough-guide  es- 
pecially is  a  great  labor  savor.  With  its  aid,  any  boy  who  can 
drive  a  team  can  do  good  work. 

This  "Guide"  has  now  been  before  the  public  long  enough  to 
have  worked  its  way  into  popular  fiivor,  but  has  failed  to  do  so.  It 
is  necessary,  therefore,  to  say  that  while  holding,  personally,  to  any 
former  opinion  of  its  value,  I  cannot  recommend  its  purchase  without 
stating  this  fact.  As  a  rule,  every  new  tool  that  has  real  practical 
merit  will  make  its  own  way.  At  Ogden  Farm,  the  Volkman  Plow 
Guide  has  shown  itself  to  be  worth  having,  but  it  obviously  has  not 
that  general  value  that  should  make  it  one  of  the  first  implements  to 
be  bought.  The  limited  capital  of  the  farmer  may  be  better  em- 
ployed in  some  other  way. 

Plowing  is  the  fundamental  work  of  cultivation,  and  very  much 
of  the  success  ot  all  cultivation  depends  upon  its  being  done  when  the 
conditions  are  such  as  to  produce  the  best  result.  No  matter  how 
hurried  the  work  may  be, — especially  in  the  case  of  heavy  clay  soil, — 
more  will  be  lost  than  gained  by  plowing  when  the  land  will  be  pud- 
dled and  packed  by  tlie  pressure  of  the  mould-board  and  of  the  feet 
of  the  team.  Light  and  dry  soils  may  be  worked  without  injury  at 
any  time,  though  even  these  get  a  better  "weathering"  if  plowed 
in  the  autumn. 

The  first  condition,  and  bv  far  the  most  important  cf  all,  is  to 
plow  ivhett  the  soil  has  only  enough  moisture  in  it  to  make  it  crumble 
when  moved.  If  it  is  too  wet  (unless  verv  light  land)  it  will  be 
compacted  into  clods,  which  it  will  take  vears  to  break  down, 
and  which  will  do  far  more  harm  than  the  plowing  will  do  good. 
If  it  is  too  dry  it  will  be  very  hard  to  plow,  and  the  furrow  slice 
will  contain  lumps  which  it  will  be  difficult  to  make  fine.  Still, 
it  is  better  to  plow  when  the  land  is  very  drv  than  when  it  is  very 
wet. 

The  second  condition  is  to  plow  in  autumn,  or  as  soon  as  con- 
venient after  the  crops  are  off  the  ground.  Man  can,  after  all, 
do  only  a  part  of  the  work  of  cultivation,  the  most  important 
part  is  done  bv  nature,  and  we  should  aim,  so  far  as  possible,  to 
aid  her.     She  works  at  the  processes  of  pulverization,  sweetening, 


PLOWING,    SUBSOILING,    AND    TRENCHING.         133 

and  oxidation*  chiefly  during  the  winter  and  spring.  In  the  sum- 
mer she  is  busy  at  other  things,  but  in  winter  she  takes  hold  of 
every  lump  of  the  rough  furrow  tops,  splits  its  particles  apart 
with  her  wedges  of  ice,  roughens  their  edges  so  that  they  will 
never  stick  together  again,  turns  the  black  oxide  of  iron  into 
iron  rust,  sets  free  the  pent-up  plant  food,  sweetens  the  acids, 
and  performs  such  wonders  in  mechanics  and  chemistry  as  man 
can  never  hope  to  equal — wonders  which  have  made  the  world 
what  it  is,  and  without  which  its  population  could  not  live. 

If  heavy  land  is  saturated  with  water  in  the  autumn,  and  lies 
soaking  all  winter,  the  action  of  the  frost  and  air  can  do  but 
little  good,  and  the  plowing  would  surely  do  harm,  but  with  proper 
underdrainage — with  only  so  much  water  in  the  soil  as  its  par- 
ticles will  absorb  within  themselves,  the  spaces  between  therri 
being  filled  with  air — there  is  nothing  to  equal  fall  plowing — 
which  has  the  further  very  great  advantage  of  lessening  the  hurry 
and  the  tax  on  the  strength  of  the  teams  in  the  spring.  One  good 
plowing  in  the  fall  is  a  saving  of  time  In  the  spring,  and  does 
more  good  than  half  a  dozen  plowings  without  the  subsequent 
weathering  to  prepare  the  land  for  the  production  of  crops. 

Spring  plowing — except  in  plowing  grass  land  for  corn — should 
be  done  as  early  as  is  consistent  with  a  proper  regard  to  the  state 
of  the  land.  It  is  better  not  to  plow  clay  land  at  all  than  plow  it 
when  wet ;  but  take  the  first  opportunity  when  it  is  dry  enough, 
to  do  as  much  as  possible,  not  only  for  the  sake  of  getting  so 
much  of  the  work  out  of  the  way,  but  to  give  the  air  as  much 
time  as  possible  to  act  on  the  newly  turned  ground. 

HOW    TO    PLOW. 

Plow  your  land  deeply,  and  "  smash  it  up."  This  is  the  begin- 
ning and  the  end  of  what  is  theoretically  good  plowing,  without 
regard  to  the  condition  of  the  soil  and  subsoil.  If  the  directions 
can  be  followed  without  injury,  they  are  emphatically  the  direc- 
tions that  should  be  followed.      If  the  land  is  fallow,  and  if  there 

*  Rusting. 


134  HANDY-BOOK   OF   HUSBANDRY. 

is  nothing  in  the  character  of  the  subsoil  to  make  it  objectionable 
when  brought  to  the  surface,  we  cannot  plow  it  too  deeply  nor 
too  roughly.  If  our  land  will  not  admit  of  such  treatment  now, 
without  injury  to  present  crops,  the  sooner  we  can  bring  it  to  a 
condition  in  which  it  will,  the  better  for  it  and  for  us. 

It  is  now  too  late  in  the  history  of  agricultural  improvement  for 
it  to  be  worth  while,  in  a  treatise  like  this,  to  discuss  the  reasons 
why  deep  plowing  is  advisable,  for  although  the  average  depth  of 
the  furrow-slice  in  all  the  United  States  is  certainly  not  over  four 
inches,  there  are  very  few  readers  of  agricultural  books  who  need 
to  be  told  that  the  country  would  be  vastly  richer,  and  would  get 
its  income  with  much  greater  certainty,  if  the  average  were  eight 
inches. 

I  vv'ould  not  recommend  that  it  be  attempted  to  reach  the  extra 
depth  at  once, — if  experiment  shows  that  this  can  safely  be  done, 
as  it  very  ofcen  will,  well  and  good, — but  in  many  soils  the  end 
must  be  gained  gradually.  A  little  of  the  uncultivated,  raw  sub- 
soil must  be  brought  up  each  autumn,  and  prepared  by  the  winter's 
frosts,  to  be  mixed  with  the  surface,  or  else  a  long  course  of  sub- 
soiling  and  cultivation  must  first  ameliorate  the  earth  that  until 
now  has  been  locked  against  the  circulation  of  air. 

In  giving  the  above  figures,  by  way  of  illustration,  I  by  no 
means  intend  it  to  be  understood  that  eight  inches  is  my  limit  of 
depth.  Ten,  twelve,  sixteen,  or  twenty  inches  would  not  measure 
my  modest  desire,  on  land  in  which  it  is  possible  to  sink  a  plow 
to  so  great  depth, — for  I  believe  I  could  make  more  money  from 
one  acre,  twent)-four  inches  deep,  than  from  six  acres,  four  ' 
inches  deep, — certainly  more  from  a  farm  of  fifty  acres,  well 
cultivated  and  enriched  to  the  depth  of  twelve  inches,  than 
from  one  hundred  acres,  six  inches  deep.  I  think  we  should 
value  our  land  by  the  cubic  feet  of  good  soil  it  contains,  rather 
than  by  its  superficial  feet. 

If  we  are  plowing  sod  land  we  should  lay  the  furrows  uni- 
formly, and  as  smoothly  as  possible,  so  that  the  grass  may  all  be 
covered  out  of  reach  of  the  harrow,  and  so  that  there  shall  be  no 
holes   or  g:ips  among  t!:c   furrows.      To  do  this  requires  a  skill 


PLOWING,   SUBSOILING,    AND   TRENCHING.         135 

which  is  acquired  at  the  plow-stilts,  not  over  books.  The  best 
instructor  in  plowing  is  a  good  team  and  plow  on  good  land. 
The  only  principle  that  can  be  set  forth  here,  with  much  advan- 
tage, Is  that  the  plow  should  be  so  adjusted  that  it  will  almost 
"  <ro    alone."       The    forces    and    the    resistances    should    be    so 

o 

balanced  that  the  implement  will  incline  to  keep  Its  proper  depth 
and  width,  and  Its  erect  position.  It  should  require  very  little 
guiding,  except  when  it  meets  with  accidental  irregularities  of  the 
surface  or  with  stones.  All  plows  have  a  certain  depth  at  which 
they  run  naturally.  To  set  them  deeper  than  this  necessitates  a 
constant  bearing  to  the  land  side  on  the  part  of  the  plowman,  and 
for  deeper  work  it  is  better,  when  practicable,  to  get  a  plow  that 
naturally  runs  deeper. 

The  *'  line  of  draft "  in  all  plows  runs  from  the  point  of  the 
center  of  resistance  (which  is  near  the  front  of  the  plow  in  the 
ground)  straight  to  the  ring  on  the  ox-yoke  or  horse-collar,  and 
the  point  to  which  the  draft  chain  Is  attached,  at  the  end  of  the 
beam,  lies  exactly  in  this  line.  If  the  line  of  draft  Is  lengthened 
it  rises  more  gradually  from  the  center  of  resistance,  and  the  end 
of  the  beam  must  descend  to  join  it — this  lowers  the  point  of  the 
plow  and  makes  it  run  deeper.  If  It  is  shortened,  It  rises  more 
abruptly,  and  causes  a  raising  of  the  beam,  and  a  less  depth  of  cut. 
These  changes  may  be  made  by  lengthening  or  shortening  the 
draft  chain  or  traces.  The  length  of  the  line  of  draft  remaining 
the  same,  if  the  chain  (or  whiffletree)  Is  attached  to  the  upper  part 
of  the  clevis,  the  end  of  the  beam  goes  down  until  the  line  of 
draft  is  met  by  the  point  to  which  the  attachment  Is  made — and 
the  plow  goes  deeper  ;  if  attached  to  the  bottom  of  the  clevis,  the 
beam  must  rise  until  this  point  meets  the  line  of  draft  and  the 
plow  runs  less  deep. 

By  a  movement  of  the  clevis  to  the  left  side,  the  beam  is 
turned  to  the  right,  until  the  new  point  of  attachment  Is  in  the 
line  of  draft,  and  the  plow  takes  less  land.  By  moving  the  clevis 
to  the  right,  the  plow  Is  thrown  to  the  left,  and  takes  more  land. 
By  throwing  the  clevis  as  far  as  possible  to  one  side,  the  plow 
may  be  made  to  work  to  the  right  or   left,  so  that  a  furrow  may 


136  HANDY-BOOK   OF  HUSBANDRY. 

be  cut  close  to  a  fence.  In  such  case,  however,  the  team  not 
being  directly  in  front  of  their  work,  pull  at  a  disadvantage.* 

The  young  plowman  will  have  to  experiment  bv  altering  the 
length  of  his  traces  and  by  changing  the  attachment  at  the  clevis, 
until  he  finds  the  proper  adjustment  of  the  draft  and  the  right 
width  and  depth  of  the  furrow  ;  after  this,  if  his  plow  is  suited  to 
its  work,  he  will  have  an  easy  time  of  it,  in  fair  land, — among 
stones  and  roots  his  task  cannot  be  made  an  easy  one. 

It  is  better,  if  possible,  to  make  the  necessary  alterations  by 
changing  the  clevis  rather  than  by  lengthening  the  traces  or  the 
draft  chain, — for  the  closer  the  team  can  be  kept  to  the  plow, 
the  more  advantageously  they  will  exert  their  power. 

Judiciously  used,  the  roller  or  wheel  is  of  great  advantage,  but 
it  should  be  set  up  free  from  the  ground  until  the  plow  has  been 
exactly  adjusted  to  its  work, — then  lowered  so  as  to  take  a  very 
little  of  the  downward  pressure,  barely  enough  to  keep  it  revolv- 
ing. More  than  this  would  tend  to  lift  the  plow  out  of  its  work, 
or  to  increase  the  resistance.  Its  proper  use  is  to  assist  in 
steadying  the  plow,  so  that  it  will  not  feci  the  swaving  of  the  line 
of  draft. 

Cut  the  furrows  in  as  nearly  a  rectangular  form  as  possible, 
that  is,  have  the  land  side  of  the  plow  perpendicular  and  the  sole 
flat.  No  matter  how  much  you  break  up  the  slice  before  you 
turn  it  to  its  place,  (and  except  in  plowing  sod,  the  more  this 
is  done  the  better,)  you  cannot  work  neatly,  unless  you  keep  a 
good  furrow,  of  uniform  height  and  width,  and  with  a  straight 
land  side  and  bottom. 

It  is  found  in  practice,  that,  except  for  very  thin  or  shallow 
plowing,  the  proportion  of  furrow  best  adapted  to  economical 
working  is  as  seven  is  to  ten, — that  is,  a  furrow  seven  inches  deep 
should  be  ten  inches  wide  ;  ten  ^nd  a  half  inches  deep,  fifteen 
inches  wide,  etc. 

*  These  directions  apply  to  plows  which  turn  the  furrow  to  the  right,  or  right-hand 
plows.      For  left-hand  plows  they  must  be  reversed. 


PLOWING,   SUBSOILING,   AND   TRENCHING.        137 


PLOWING    FROM    THE    CENTER    OF    THE    FIELD. 

About  fifteen  years  ago,  at  the  Farmers'  Club,  in  New  York, 
the  question  of  the  "  Gee-about  system  of  plowing  "  was  much 
discussed.  I  numbered  myself  among  its  adherents  and  advo- 
cates, and  I  have  since  seen  no  reason  to  change  my  opinion  o*" 
its  merits. 

The  only  difficulty  about  it  is  to  find  the  right  starting  point, 
and  to  keep  the  furrows  so  uniform  in  width  as  to  come  out  even 
on  all  sides  at  the  end  of  the  work. 

The  advantages  of  the  system  are  manifest: — 

First.  The  soil,  instead  of  being  plowed  against  the  fences, 
where  it  is  of  no  use,  (is  rather  injurious,)  is  turned  toward  the 
center  of  the  field.  Of  course  this  should  not  be  continued  to 
such  an  extent  as  to  strip  the  land  very  far  from  the  fences,  but 
it  may  be  repeated  a  good  many  times  before  the  headland  will  be 
stripped  too  far. 

Second.  The  team  never  treads  on  the  plowed  land,  which  is 
left  as  light  as  the  plow  turns  it,  while  they  work  better  at  the 
corners  from  their  more  solid  footing. 

Third.  There  is  less  heavy  handling  of  the  plow  at  the  turn- 
ings, and  even  the  plowman  has  better  footing  for  his  hardest 
work. 

Fourth.  There  are  no  dead  furrows  left  in  the  center  and 
toward  the  corners,  as  in  plowing  around  from  the  outside. 

To  lay  out  a  field  for  plowing  in  this  wav,  (see  Fig.  57,)  take 
a  long  pole  and  measure  a  certain  distance  inward  from  two  points 
on  each  side,  (say  three  rods,)  and  set  stakes  at  the  points  so  found, 
(a,  ^,  ^,  etc.)  Then  take  a  position  opposite  one  corner  of  the 
field,  and  set  a  stake  where  the  lines  ranging  from  the  two  stakes 
at  each  side  of  you  intersect,  (.v.)  Set  stakes  opposite  the  other 
corners  in  the  same  manner.  Next,  measure  another  distance 
inward  from  the  stakes  first  placed,  and  mark  the  points  of 
their  outer  section,  {b.,  h^  />,  etc.,)  and  stake  the  corners  as  at 
y-i  y-)  y-)  y^      Continue    in   this  way  until    you  have    only  a    small 


138 


HANDY-BOOK    OF   HUSBANDRY. 


F"'E-  57- 


PLOWING,   SUBSOILING,    AND   TRENCHING.         139 

space  left  between  the  lines  which  inclose  the  center  of  the  field, 
(^,  r,  z,  etc.) 

Commence  the  work  by  plowing  this  small  space,  commencing 
at  the  stakes  last  set  for  the  first  furrow,  and  throwing  the  earth 
from  the  center,  as  it  is  difficult,  especially  in  an  irregular  field, 
to  get  evenly  started  in  plowing  toward  the  center.  After  this 
piece  (which  need  not  contain  more  than  a  square  rood)  has  been 
plowed  up,  reverse  your  direction  and  turn  your  furrow  against 
the  outside  of  it,  and  so  continue  until  you  reach  the  boundaries 
of  the  field. 

The  stakes  set  at  <?,  ^,  b^  h^  etc.,  will  be  useful  as  guides, 
enabling  you  to  so  regulate  the  width  of  the  furrow  on  the  different 
sides  that  you  will  come  out  even  at  the  end  of  the  work. 

I  am  aware  that  this  plan  is  open  to  the  objection  that  it  is 
unusual,  but  I  feel  confident  that  any  farmer  who  will  try  it  will 
find  its  adoption  easy,  and  that  it  has  all  the  advantages  claimed 
for  it. 

In  fields  with  parallel  sides,  the  center  piece  may  be  larger,  and 
be  plowed  in  "  lands," — or  in  a  single  land  against  a  back  fur- 
row, but  this  cannot  be  quite  so  neatly  done  in  a  piece  of  any 
other  shape,  though  it  is  not  impossible,  after  one  furrow  has  been 
thrown  outtvard. 

I  have  concluded  to  say  nothing  of  the  manner  of  plowing  in 
"lands,"  "ridge  and  furrow-plowing,"  etc.,  not  because  the  sub- 
ject is  not  important,  but  for  the  reason  that,  after  a  careful  search 
through  hundreds  of  pages  that  have  been  published  about  it,  I 
have  failed  to  find  any  thing  of  importance  that  I  had  not  already 
learned  in  practice,  and  that  will  not  form  a  part  of  the  very 
early  practical  education  of  any  young  farmer  who  needs  the 
knowledge. 

There  are  so  many  topics  which  demand  attention  in  a  hand- 
book for  general  use,  that  only  the  more  important  can  claim 
much  space. 

On  one  point,  both  practical  experience  and  common  sense 
fully  agree.  That  is,  that  (as  was  stated  under  the  head  of 
"  Fences")  the  fields  should  be  so  arranged  as  to  make  the  furrows 


140  HANDY-BOOK    OF   HUSBANDRY. 

as  long  as  possible.  It  has  been  found,  bv  actual  trial,  that,  in 
plowing  a  licit!  three  hundred  yards  long,  a  man  and  team  will  do 
one-third  more  work  than  in  plowing  one  one  hundred  yards  long 
— the  difference  in  time  being  made  up  in  the  more  frequent 
turnings  required  by  the  shorter  furrows. 

In  cutting  furrows  nine  inches  wide,  the  time  required  to  plow 
an  acre  at  the  following  rates  would  be — 

Going  at  the  rate  of  i  J- miles  per  hour 7  hours  20  minutes. 

"  "         '<     of  ij    "        «'       "      6     "      30  «« 

"  "         "     of  2j     "        "      "      4     *< 

«  «  «       Q^    .  L      «         ((        ((  _  7        "  8  " 

In  this  table  no  allowance  is  made  for  turnings. 

The  distance  traveled  in  plowing  an  acre  is  as  follows  : — 

Width  of  furrow,  8  inches Distance,   I2i  miles. 

«  "  9     «        "  II       " 

"  "         10     "     "  9,",.   " 

«                          «                  ]  J          «  «  g  « 

"  «  12         "         "  8i         " 

SUBSOILING. 

By  the  term  subsoiling,  is  meant  any  process  which  loosens 
the  subsoil  without  bringing  it  to  the  surface.  In  spade  work,  it 
is  done  by  throwing  the  top  spit  forward,  and  loosening,  without 
removing  the  next  spit  below.  In  plowing,  the  loosening  cftect 
is  produced  by  following  in  the  furrow  of  the  surface  plow  with  a 
subsoil  ploiu^  which  passes  like  a  wedge,  or  like  a  mole,  through  the 
subsoil,  allowing  it  to  fall  back,  in  a  loosened  condition,  into  its 
original  place. 

There  arc  several  forms  of  this  implement.  That  which  is 
best  known  being  a  cast-iron  plate  shaped  very  much  like  the 
land  side  and  projecting  point  of  the  common  plow.  On  the 
right-hand  side,  in  the  place  of  the  mould  board,  there  is  a  rising 
flange,  or  inclined  plane,  which  raises  the  earth  on  that  side  about 
four  inches,  (with  a  slight  side  thrust).  As  the  plow  passes  through 
the  ground,  the  loosened  subsoil  falls  off  behind.  The  tool  docs 
good  work,  but  requires  a  heavy  team. 

A  very  great  improvement  on   the  original  form  is   shown   in 


PLOWING,   SUBSOILING,   AND   TRENCHING.        141 

Fig.  58,  of  which  the  working  parts  are  made  entirely  of  wrought 
iron  and  steel.      The  draft  is   very    much    lighter   than   that  of 

Fig.  58. 


Fig.  59. 


the  wing  plow,  described   above,  and  it   is  much  easier  to  manage 
it  on  stony  land. 

This  is  the  most  deceptive  implement  used  in  agriculture.  It 
looks  as  though  it  would  produce  but  little  effect  in  a  heavy  clay 
subsoil,  yet   in  actual    trial   it   produces  more   commotion    in   the 

ground  than  any  other  sub- 
soiler  that  I  have  seen  used. 
The  total  rise  given  to  the 
earth  at  the  level  of  the 
plow  foot  is  hardly  more 
than  an  inch,  but  it  so 
completely  crushes  the  soil 
above  it,  and  for  considerable  distance  on  each  side,  that  it  leaves 
the  bottom  of  the  furrow  raised  in  a  ridge  three  or  four  inches 
high.  The  action  of  this  foot  is  both  upward  and  sidewise,  the 
soil  being  loosened,  very  much  as  shown  in  the  shaded  portion  of 

Fig.   59. 

On  land  that  needs  draining,  subsoiling  is  of  no  use,  at  least  its 
effect  is  not  permanent  enough  to  make  it  pay  ;  but  in  a  soil  that 
is  (either  naturally  or  artificially)  well  underdrained,  I  know  of  no 
operation  connected  with  the  cultivation  of  the  land,  except  drain- 


142  HANDY-BOOK    OF   HUSBANDRY. 

ing  itself,  that  is  so  beneficial  and  so  lasting  in  its  effect.  A  well- 
drained  subsoil,  that  has  been  once  well  broken  up  with  a  subsoil 
plow,  will  never  again  become  so  hard  and  impenetrable  to  roots 
as  it  was  before  the  operation.  It  opens  a  way  in  the  lower  soil 
for  the  deeper  entrance  of  roots,  and  these  are  always  ready  to 
avail  themselves  of  an  opportunity  of  going  down  beyond  the 
reach  of  the  drying  effect  of  the  sun's  rays  and  of  the  wind. 
When  tiie  crop  is  removed,  these  roots  remain  and  decay  in  the  • 
subsoil,  entirclv  changing  its  character.  The  more  ready  admis- 
sion that  is  given  to  the  water  of  rains  and  to  the  circulation  of 
air,  hastens  the  chemical  changes  in  the  composition  of  the  sub- 
soil, and  these  changes,  together  with  the  decay  of  the  roots, 
will  in  time  bring  the  soil  to  the  condition  of  that  which  has  been 
turned  by  the  surface  plow,  so  that,  after  a  very  few  years,  a 
subsoil  which  would  have  impaired  the  fertility  of  the  field  if  at 
once  turned  up  in  large  quantities,  may  be  brought  to  the  surface 
as  plentifully  as  is  desired.  This,  in  connection  with  a  gradua 
deepening  of  the  surface  furrow,  is  the  best  means  of  making  the 
soil  deeper, — of  making  more  soil  to  the  acre. 

I  must  repeat,  however,  that  on  wet  land,  the  foregoing  effects 
cannot  be  expected,  at  least  not  in  a  sufficient  degree  to  make  the 
operation  advisable. 

The  depth  of  the  working  of  the  subsoil  plow  is  regulated  by 
means  of  a  clevis,  in  the  same  manner  as  that  of  the  surface  plow, 
and  it  may  be  made  to  run  from  six  inches  to  eighteen  inches 
below  the  bottom  of  the  furrow  of  the  surface  plow,  according 
to  the  character  of  the  subsoil  and  the  strength  of  the  team.  As 
many  as  eight  oxen  are  sometimes  used,  and  often  a  single  pair 
will  do  good  work. 

The  "  trick"  of  the  work  is  to  set  the  plow  as  deep  as  it  will 
work  without  getting  beyond  the  control  of  the  plowman.  It  has 
a  wonderful  tendency  to  take  too  deep  a  hold,  as  soon  as  it  passes  a 
point  at  which  the  team  can  exercise  a  lifting  force  upon  it,  and  it 
will  sometimes  get  "  set  "  beyond  the  power  of  extrication,  except 
bv  digrring.  So  far  as  the  plowman  has  anv  power  to  prevent  it  from 
going  too  deep,  he  must   keep  it   out   bv  lifting  at  the   stilts.      By 


PLOWING,   SUBSOILING,   AND   TRENCHING.        143 

bearing  down,  as  he  would  do  in  the  case  of  the  surface  plow,  he 
will  only  drive  its  wedge-shaped  point  deeper  into  the  ground. 

The  steel  subsoiler  (the  one  shown  in  Fig.  58)  has  other  uses 
besides  that  of  following  in  the  furrow  of  the  surface  plow.  The 
smallest  size,  running  six  or  eight  inches  deep  and  drawn  by  one 
horse,  is  a  capital  cultivator  for  working  between  rows  of  corn 
or  roots,  loosening  the  soil  more  deeply  and  more  thoroughly  than 
any  other  implement.  It  should  not,  however,  be  run  so  near 
to  the  rows  as  to  cut  ofF  the  spreading  roots,  nor  should  it  be 
used  at  all  except  during  the  earlier  periods  of  growth. 

The  larger  sizes,  running  a  foot  or  more  deep,  at  intervals  of 
two  feet  in  width,  will  loosen  up  a  run-down  or  hide-bound 
meadow  or  pasture,  so  that  a  top-dressing  and  subsequent  roll- 
ing will  often  restore  its  fertility,  and  postpone  the  necessity  of 
bringing  it  into  cultivation. 

Land  that  has  been  plowed  in  autumn  may  be  better  prepared 
for  the  planting  of  the  next  spring  by  the  use  of  this  tool — crossing 
the  field  first  in  one  direction  and  then  in  the  other — than  by  the 
use  of  the  common  plow.  Of  course,  the  harrow  would  be  as 
necessary  in  the  one  case  as  in  the  other. 

TRENCHING. 

In  the  Island  of  Jersey,  (in  the  English  Channel,)  which  has 
always  been  noted  for  its  great  fertility, — and  especially  for  the 
large  parsnips  there  grown,  which  are  extensively  used  in  cattle- 
feeding,  and  which  require  a  very  deep  soil, — there  has  been  used 
for  a  hundred  years  what  is  known  as  the  Great  Jersey  Trench 
Plow,  which,  drawn  by  six  or  eight  horses,  turns  the  soil  to  a  depth 
of  from  one  and  a  half  to  two  feet,  the  surface  soil  and  the  manure 
being  first  turned  into  the  bottom  of  the  deep  furrow  by  an  ordi- 
nary plow  drawn  by  two  horses.  Neighbors  "join  teams  "  for  the 
operation,  which  is  called  "  The  Great  Digging." 

For  the  deep  cultivation  of  gardens  and  small  tracts,  it  is  cus- 
tomary to  do  the  work  of  trenching  by  hand  ;  the  process  being 
to  dig  a  trench  about  two  feet  wide,  and  of  the  desired  depth, 
10 


144 


HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 


throwing  the  soil  all  out  on  one  side,  then  to  dig  down  to  the 
same  depth  for  another  two  feet,  putting  the  top  soil  in  the  bot- 
tom of  the  first  trench,  and  the  last  digging  on  the  top,  thus  com- 
pletely inverting  the  soil.  The  manure  is  cither  put  at  the  bot- 
tom of  the  trench  or  mixed  evenly  through  the  whole  mass. 
When  the  last  trench  has  been  dug  out,  the  earth  thrown  from  the 
first  trench  is  wheeled  around  and  used  to  fill  it. 

I  cannot  better  close  this  subject  than  by  saying,  for  the  third 
time,  that  no  benefit  at  all  adequate  to  the  outlay  can  be  hoped 
for  from  either  trenching  or  subsoiling,  unless  the  subsoil  is  (either 
naturally  or  artificially)  well  drained. 


PLOWING    WITH    THREE    HORSES    ABREAST. 

It  is  generally  considered  that  three  horses  working  abreast 
exert  as  much  force  on  a  plow  as  four  horses  working  in  pairs, 
and  such  experience  as   I  have  had  in  the   matter  indicates   that 

the  opinion  is  a  correct  one. 
There  are  several  methods 
for  gearing  such  teams. 
The  simplest,  and,  I  think, 
the  best,  is  by  the  use  of 
an  evener,  with  a  set  of 
double-trees  and  a  single-tree,  as  shown  in  Fig.   60. 

The  reins  may  be  arranged  in  a  triple  set,  or,  with  a  tractable 
team,  I  have  usually  found  it  sufficient  to  tie  the  three  bits  together, 
and  to  pass  a  single  rein  to  the  outside  rings  of  the  bits  of  the  two 
outside  horses.  It  is  especially  desirable  that  one  horse  should  walk 
in  the  furrow  and  the  other  two  on  the  unplowed  land  where  they 
have  the  best  footing.  This  requires  the  plow  to  be  set  far  to  the 
furrow. 


5        ~     -        2        "  "         ^ 

Fig.  60.— Set  of  Whifflctrccs  and  Evcncrs  for  Three 
Horses. 


CHAPTER     VII 


PULVERIZING. 


Reduce  the  soil  to  a  powder,  or  bring  it  as  nearly  to  that  con- 
dition as  you  can.  The  roots  of  plants  absorb  only  such  matters 
as  are  presented  to  them  on  the  outsides  of  the  particles  of  the 
soil,  and  the  air,  water,  and  maraire  which  prepare  the  plant 
food  to  be  taken  up,  can  only  act  on  such  surfaces.  A  soil  mav 
contain  enough  mineral  food  for  twenty  crops,  and  yet  be  prac- 
tically barren,  if  its  food  is  locked   up  within  impenetrable  clods. 

As  the  draining  away  of  the  water  in  which  the  particles  of  the 
soil  are  immersed,  allows  roots  to  travel  over  wider  pasturage, 
and  allows  the  changing  air  to  do  its  work  of  chemical  prepara- 
tion, so  the  finer  pulverization  of  the  particles  is  conducive  to  the 
increasing  richness  of  the  land,  to  the  better  supply  of  food,  and 
to  the  easier  seeking  of  food  by  the  plant. 

The  great  pulverizer  in  our  northern  latitudes  is  frost,  to  the 
action  of  which  sufficient  reference  has  been  made  in  the  preced- 
ing chapter.  The  tools  which  we  use  for  the  work  of  pulver- 
ization, after  the  plow  and  the  subsoiler,  are  the  roller,  the  harrow, 
the  cultivator,  the  horse-hoe,  etc. 


THE    ROLLER. 


The  best  roller  (and  the  most  costly)  is  made  of  cast-iron 
wheels,  from  twenty  to  thirty-six  inches  in  diameter,  and  twelve 
wide,  set  close  together  on  an  iron  axle,  on  which  they  revolve 
independently.  From  four  to  six  of  these  wheels  (or  sections)  are 
used  together,  and  they  are  provided  with  a  pole  and  double-trees, 
and  with  a   box  in  which  stones   may  be  placed  if  extra  weight 


146 


HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 


is  desired.  1  his  roller  (Fig.  6i)  has  the  great  advantage  of  turn- 
ing around  without  disturbing  the  surface  of  the  soil,  as  it  would 
if  all  in  one  piece. 


Fig.  6i.— Field  Roller. 

A  cheaper  roller,  and  one  answering  a  tolerably  good  purpose, 
is  made  by  setting  a  smoothly  shaven  log  so  as  to  revolve  in  a 
frame  similar  to  the  one  shown  in  the  cut. 

The  roller  has  several  important  uses.  Bv  passing  over  the 
land  after  plowing,  it  settles  the  furrows  so  that  they  will  not  be 
turned  over  by  the  harrow,  and  it  gives  the  best  possible  crushing 
to  the  top  of  the  slice,  grinding  it  to  dust.  After  the  harrow  has  cut 
the  ground  (which  the  plow  has  inverted  in  a  lumpy  condition)  into 
smaller  lumps,  the  roller  passes  over  it  again  and  crushes  these 
still  smaller.  The  more  frequentlv  the  two  operations  succeed 
each  other,  the  finer  the  soil  will  become,  especially  at  the  top, 
while  each  rolling  presses  down  to  the  general  level  of  the  surface 
such  stones  as  the  harrow  may  have  thrown  up. 

Used  in  the  spring,  on  winter  grain,  or  on  mowing  land  or 
pastures,  the  roller  corrects  the  "heaving"  effect  of  the  winter's 
frosts,  settles  the  plants  back  into  their  places,  and  compresses 
fine  soil  closely  around  their  roots.  It,  at  the  same  time,  presses 
loose  stones  into  the  ground,  and  prepares  a  smooth  surface  for 
the  mowing  machine,  or  reaper. 

Of  course  this  implement,  like  all  others  which  arc  intended 
to  make  the  soil  smoother  or  finer,  should  be  carcfull\'  kept  off 
from  the  land  when  it  is  so  wet  that,  instead  of  crumblinc'  under 
the  treatment,  it  becomes  only  more  closely  compacted.     There 


PULVERIZING.  147 

is,  however,  no  objection  to  its  use,  but  almost  always  an  advan- 
tage in  the  dryest  weather  of  summer.  As  the  roller  is  used  only 
during  a  very  small  part  of  the  year,  it  is  far  more  likely  to  rust 
out  than  to  wear  out.  It  should,  therefore,  be  carefully  housed 
when  not  needed  in  the  field,  and  it  will  be  much  easier  to  work 
if  occasionally  greased. 

THE  HARROW. 

This  ancient,  time-honored,  and  unsatisfactory  tool — only  a 
better-than-nothing  affair,  at  best — must  retain  its  hold  on  the 
affections  of  those  who  like  it,  and  command  the  toleration  of 
those  who  use  it  without  liking  it — on  the  principle  that  (to  re- 
verse an  old  saw)  handsome  does  that  handsome  is. 

A  harrow  tooth,  (especially  if  made  of  iron  and  well  sharpened,) 
if  furnished  with  a  suitable  handle,  would  be  the  best  sort  of 
tool  with  which  to  pack  the  earth  around  newly  set  fence-posts. 
It  is  impossible  to  drop  it  into  the  ground,  or  to' drag  it  in  a  ver- 
tical position  over  the  ground,  without  packing  the  earth  below  its 
point.  The  earth  in  a  fence-hole  that  has  been  packed  in  with 
a  sharp  crowbar  may  be  made  solid  to  within  two  inches  of  the 
surface,  too  solid  for  any  plant  to  thrive  in,  although  the  immediate 
surface  may  be  fine  and  soft  as  a  flower-bed. 

Of  course,  it  would  take  a  good  many  harrowings  to  pack  the 
lower  soil  to  any  thing  like  this  degree,  but  every  time  a  sharp- 
toothed  iron  harrow  is  drawn  across  it,  it  exercises  a  tendency  in  this 
direction,  and  although  I  use  it  myself,  for  want  of  a  substitute,  and 
know  nothing  else  that  will  entirely  take  its  place,  I  hope  that 
some  efficient  substitute  may  yet  be  found,  and  I  should  have 
much  faith  in  the  success  of  an  experiment  with  teeth  shaped  like 
those  of  the  steam  grubber,  which  have  square,  case-hardened,  chisel- 
like ends. 

The'  sorts  of  harrows  in  use  are  numerous,  and  are  generally 
familiar  to  all.  A  very  good  one  has  a  single  square  frame, 
with  about  twenty  teeth.  This,  in  a  rather  heavy  soil,  is 
enough  for  a  single  light  team.     For  more  general  use,  it  would 


148  HANDY-BOOK   OF   HUSBANDRY. 

be  best  to  purchase  Geddes'  folding  A  harrow,  or  the  double  square 
Scotch  harrow,  for  stiffer  soil.  This  may  be  taken  apart,  and  only 
one  side  used. 

There  have  recently  come  into  use  two  new  forms  of  harrow  which 
have  much  to  commend  them.  The  first  is  Thomas's  Smoothing 
Harrow,  which  has  teeth  of  y^  steel  rods,  sloping  backwaniy  so  as 
to  effect  only  a  smoothing  of  the  surface  of  the  ground.  It  is  a 
capital  tool  to  destroy  very  young  weeds  and  to  give  a  fine  tilth  to 
the  seed  bed.  Used  immediately  before  the  planting  of  corn,  and 
again  as  soon  as  the  rows  are  well  indicated  by  the  young  sprouts, 
the  cost  of  the  crop  will  be  very  much  reduced.  The  second  is  the 
"chain"  harrow,  an  English  invention,  but  now  made  in  this 
country.  It  is  made  up  of  triangular  sections  of  cast  iron,  connected 
with  wrought- iron  links,  so  as  to  be  very  flexible.  It  drops  into 
every  depression  and  rides  over  every  hump  so  as  to  scratch  the 
whole  ground  thoroughly. 

In  using  the  pointed-tooth  harrow,  where  it  is  desirable  to  cut  up 
the  soil  very  thoroughly,  at  a  considerable  outlav  of  power  on  the 
part  of  the  team,  I  find  it  a  good  practice  to  stand  with  the  feet 
wide  apart  on  the  harrow,  throwing  the  weight  first  on  one  side  and 
then  on  the  other.  This  gives  a  swa\  ing  movement  to  the  im- 
plement, which  tears  up  the  soil  very  thoroughly. 

Shares'  harrow  (Fig.  62^  is  a  great  improvement  over  the 
common  harrow  for  general  use.  I  have  used  it  for  ten  years 
with  excellent  effect,  and  confidently  recommend  it — especially  for 
harrowing  sod-furrows.  It  is  thus  described  by  the  manufac- 
turers : — 

"  The  advantages  of  this  harrow  lie  principally  in  the  con- 
'*  struction  of  the  teeth  or  colters,  which  are  broad,  thin  blades 
"  of  cast  iron,  inclining  forward  so  as  to  prevent  their  clogging 
"  with  roots,  grass,  stones,  etc.,  as  well  as  to  cut  the  sods  and 
"  force  an  easy  entrance  into  any  kind  of  soil.  The  mould- 
"  board  is  attached  to,  and  forms  the  lower  or  back  end  of  the 
'•■  colter,  the  lower  edge  of  which  is  continued  a  short  distance 
*'  below  the   covering  portion   of  the  tooth,  and  forms  the  point. 


PULVERIZING. 


149 


"  This  serves  to  elevate  the  teeth  over  stumps,  stones,  and  other 
"  impediments,  and  also  gives  them  durability.  In  preparing  land 
*'  which  ordinarily  needs  plow^ing  several  times  for  root  crops  or 


"  grain,  by  the  use  of  this  harrow,  it  is  only  necessary  to  plow 
"  once,  and  it  will,  by  its  lifting,  pulverizing  process,  prepare  and 
"  finish  the  ground  more  thoroughly  and  satisfactorily  than  can  be 
*'  done  with  the  usual  styles  of  harrows,  and  in  less  time. 


150  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"  This  harrow  is  six  feet  in  width  when  expanded,  but  when 
"  closed  for  transportation  is  less  than  two  feet.  It  is  seven  feet 
"  long,  and  weighs  one  hundred  and  fifty-five  pounds." 

THE    CULTIVATOR. 

There  are  various  modifications  of  this  tool.  The  teeth  may 
be  made  of  various  forms.  Sometimes  the  common  harrow  teeth 
are  substituted,  and  sometimes  shovel-shaped  teeth.  It  is  a  good 
improvement  to  use,  in  the  place  of  the  hindmost  teeth  on  the 
arms,  a  pair  of  the  small  i/'tfr^j  of  the  horse-hoe,  shown  in  Fig.  63. 
The  cultivator  is  used  in  working  between  the  rows  of  corn, 
roots,  etc.,  and  is  verv  much  better  for  this  purpose  than  the 
plow. 

In  the  large  corn-fields  of  the  West,  a  great  deal  of  hard  work 
is  saved  by  the  use  of  a  sulkv  cultivator,  on  which  the  driver 
rides.  These  are  sometimes  made  wide  enough  to  cultivate  two 
rows  at  once,  and  drawn  by  two  horses.  It  is  stated,  however, 
that  the  cultivation  done  bv  this  tool  is  far  less  complete  than  is 
desirable,  and  that  it  is  less  popular  than  when  first  introduced. 

For  the  simple  purpose  of  cultivating  the  ground  between  rows 
of  plants,  without  reference  to  the  killing  of  weeds,  there  is  no 
implement  to  be  compared  to  the  smallest  sized  subsoil  plow  of 
the  form  shown  in  Fig.  58,  which  mav  easily  be  drawn  bv  one 
horse  to  a  depth  of  from  five  to  eight  inches,  and  which  leaves 
the  soil  lighter  and  more  exposed  to  the  air  than  anv  of  the  so- 
named  cultivators.  If  the  rows  are  more  than  two  feet  apart, 
the  subsoiler  should  be  run  twice  in  each  space,  but  not  so  close 
to  the  plants  as  to  disturb  them  in  their  position,  as  this  would 
cause  the  breaking  off  of  important  feeding  roots,  while  the  tool 
itself  might  cut  off  some  of  the  more  important  side  roots. 

In  fact,  in  cultivating  hoed  crops,  it  is  prudent  to  act  on  the 
theorv,  that  after  thev  have  attained  one-half  their  growth,  their 
roots  occupv  the  whole  space  between  the  rows,  and  after  this, 
to    confine    the    cultivator    to   the  most  shallow   work  that  will 


PULVERIZING.  151 

break  the    crust   of  the  ground,  and  kill    such  weeds  as  may  still 
be  growing. 

In  the  early  stages  of  growth^  cultivate  as  deeply  as  possible — late  in 
the  season^  only  an  inch  or  two. 

THE    HORSE-HOE. 

A   modification   of  the   cultivator,  and,  foe  most   uses,  an  im- 
provement on  it,  is  the  horse-hoe^  (Fig.    ^2>-))  which  has  a  sharp 


Fig.  63. — Horse-Hoe, 

tooth  in  front  for  a  steering  pivot ;  a  small  plow-snaped  tooth  at 
each  side,  which  may  be  made  to  run  very  close  to  the  row,  as 
it  throws  the  earth  fro?n  it  ;  and  a  broad  V-shaped,  knifelike 
blade  at  the  rear,  ending  in  a  rising  comb.  The  knife  edge  cuts 
off  all  weeds  about  an  inch  below  the  surface,  and  has  sufficient 
bend  to  throw  back,  toward  the  row,  the  earth  that  the  wing  plow 
draws  from  it — leaving  it  very  loose  and  fine. 

The  intention  of  the  rising  comb  at  the  back  is  to  leave  the 
weeds  on  the  surface,  allowing  the  earth  to  fall  through  the  spaces. 
I  never  could  see  that  this  part  of  the  programme  was  carried  out ; 
but,  notwithstanding  this,  it  is  a  capital  tool,  and,  with  the  small 
subsoiler  for  the  earlier  work,  is  all  that  could  be  desired  for  small- 
sized  fields. 


162 


HANDY-BOOK    OF   HUSBANDRY. 


Holbrook's  horse-hoe  (Fig.  64)  is  a  strong,  simple,  well-made 
tool,  which  is  better  for  hard  or  rough  land  than  the  one  de- 
scribed above,  and  for  all  work  it  is  a  good  tool. 


Fig.  64. — Holbrook's   No.   I    Horse-Hoe. 
THE    MULLER. 


This  is  a  tool  much  used  in  Rhode  Island,  which  I  have  never 
seen  elsewhere,  but  which  is  worthy  of  general  adoption.  Its 
local    name  is  the   mullcr.      Its    construction   is  very  simple,  (as 


Fig.  65.— The  Muller. 

shown  in  Fig.  65,)  and  it  is  made  at  the  wagon  shops  throughout 
the  State.  Its  teeth  are  about  si.x  inches  long,  and  the  front  and 
back  teeth  alternate  along  the  bar,  so  that  every  inch  of  the 
ground  is  pulverized.  Bv  bearing  on  the  front  or  back  row  of 
teeth,  (bv  lifting  or  bearing  down  on  the  handles,)  slight  inequali- 
ties in  the  surface  may  be  made  smooth. 


PULVERIZING.  153 

Themulleris  drawn  by  a  single  horse,  the  traces  being  attached 
near  the  ends  of  the  bar.  It  is  more  properly  a  harrow  than  a 
cultivator,  as  it  is  too  wide  to  be  used  between  rows,  although 
a  shorter  tool  of  the  same  construction,  with  a  steering  rest  behind, 
would  answer  very  well  for  this  purpose. 

Whatever  kind  of  horse-hoe  or  cultivator  we  may  use,  they 
will  usually  be  found  profitable,  in  proportion  to  the  frequency 
and  the  depth  of  their  use  ; — the  only  qualification  of  this  state- 
ment being,  that  their  vigorous  use  should  cease  after  the  side 
roots  of  the  crop  have  spread  so  as  to  occupy  all  or  nearly  all  of 
the  ground  between  the  rows. 


CHAPTER     VIII. 


MANURES; 


So  long  as  men  are  cultivating  a  soil  whose  virgin  fertility 
responds  to  their  demands  with  unfailing  generosity,  so  long  as  the 
tickling  hoe  brings  the  brightest  harvest  smile,  it  is  useless  to  talk 
to  them  about  manure.  Indeed,  it  would  not  pay  under  such 
circumstances  to  use  manure,  and  we  have  no  right  to  expect 
any  thing  to  be  done  in  farming  that  does  not  pay. 

The  East  has  been,  and  the  West  now  is  (very  largely)  in  the 
hands  of  farmers  who  found,  or  who  find,  that  their  fields  produce 
large  crops,  year  after  year,  without  the  cost  and  labor  of  manur- 
ing. Manure  would  not  increase  their  yield  at  all  in  proportion 
to  the  outlay.  That  the  soil  is  being  made  less  valuable  for  pos- 
terity, its  occupants  cannot  be  convinced.  Their  particular  locality 
is  an  exception  to  the  inexorable  rule  ;  it  always  is, — and  they 
do  not  always  live  long  enough  to  be  convinced  to  the  contrary. 
After  all,  why  need  they  be  convinced  ?  It  would  be  better  for 
posterity  that  they  should  prevent  the  soil  from  growing  poor  ; 
but  posterity,  when  its  time  shall  come,  will  be  amply  repaid  for 
making  it  rich  again,  and  will  have,  by  reason  of  a  more  dense 
population,  better  facilities  for  doing  so.  In  the  abstract.  It  is  a 
sad  thing  to  see  the  power  of  production  diminishing  under  cul- 
tivation ;  but  we  have  no  just  right  to  blame  those  who  are  the 
cause  of  the  decrease.  They  are  entitled  to  their  use  of  the  land, 
and  if  they  leave  it  less  fertile  than  they  found  it,  they,  at  the 
same  time,  in  America  at  least,  leave  it  tamed,  peopled,  and  better 
fitted  for  habitation.  What  they  destroy  on  the  one  hand,  they 
more  than  build  up  on  the  other. 

The  farmers  of  the  West  deal  with  wide  areas  and  large  herds. 


MANURES.  155 

Their  pioneer  life  has  its  hardships,  and  its  compensations  ;  and  I 
very  much  doubt  the  justness  of  most  of  the  criticisms,  which  we, 
who  have  different  necessities,  are  so  free  to  bestow  upon  them. 
Assuredly,  our  intense  system  of  cultivation,  which  is  necessarily 
confined  to  small  farms,  would  fail  if  attempted  on  the  frontier.  We 
may  vi^ell  a(7ord  to  let  them  follow  the  path  that  their  circumstances 
have  marked  out  for  them,  for,  after  all,  it  is  but  the  thin  surface 
of  the  land  that  they  injure,  and  while  they  will  destroy  it  for  the 
sort  of  farming  that  they  pursue,  they  will  hardly  touch  the  stores 
from  which  a  better  system  of  agriculture  will  draw  the  means 
for  its  renewed  and  more  permanent  fertility. 

The  foregoing  applies  only  to  those  who  occupy  lands  of 
"  inexhaustible  fertility  " — while  they  remain  such.  Later  in  the 
history  of  these  lands,  we  begin  to  hear  of  "  insects,"  "  blight," 
"  wet  seasons,"  "  dry  seasons,"  "  weeds,"  and  all  the  long  list  of 
scourges  which  beset  the  path  of  all  farmers,  but  which  become 
grave,  only  when  the  bountiful  productiveness  of  the  soil  grows 
weak  and  unable  to  overcome  their  devastatino-  influence.  There  is 
a  long  period  between  the  eras  of  "  inexhaustible  fertility"  and 
"absolute  exhaustion,"  durins;  which  the  science  of  farmino-  should 
come  to  the  rescue,  and  save  that  which  the  unaided  art  of  farming 
threatens  with  destruction.  Then  we  need  to  study  the  question 
of  inanure^ — then,  true  farming  begins.  Let  me  not  be  under- 
stood   as   undervaluino;  the   intelligent   management   of  his  affairs, 

t)  too  ■  ' 

which  marks  the  character  of  the  frontier  farmer,  or  his  useful- 
ness in  the  world.  I  mean,  only,  that  he  is  rather  a  manipulator 
of  what  the  earth  gives  him  most  freely,  than  a  skillful  stimulator 
of  her  power  to  give  ;  and  even  this  difference  is  far  more  marked 
with  reference  to  the  question  of  manures,  than  to  any  other 
branch  of  farming  ; — generally  it  is  not  apparent  when  we  come  to 
the  breeding  of  animals. 

Lying  between  the  frontiermen  and  the  farmers  of  the  Atlantic 
slope,  come  those  who  cultivate  the  garden  States  east  of,  and 
bordering  upon  the  Mississippi  River.  There  seems  to  be  no  reason 
whv  thev  should  be  regarded  in  this  connection  as  forming  a  dis- 
tinct class  by  themselves.      In  so  far  as  they  are  still  independent 


156  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

of  the  necessity  of  adding  manure  to  their  soil,  they  belong  to 
one  class  ; — when  tlie  waning  fertility  of  their  land  has  compelled 
them  to  seek  its  aid,  to  the  other. 

When  the  demand  for  manure  comes,  (as  it  must,  inevitably, 
come  in  time,  to  all  farms  that  are  not  occasionally  inundated,) 
the  rules  for  its  application,  and  the  principles  of  its  action  must 
apply  to  all  alike.  Of  course  one  soil  may  be  best  improved  by 
one  manure,  another  soil  by  a  different  manure,  but — other  things 
being  equal — in  all  localities.  North  and  South,  East  and  West, 
the  operation  of  manure  and  the  necessity  for  Its  use  are  based  on 
the  same  laws,  and  are  regulated  by  the  relation  between  the 
plant  and  the  soil  on  which  it  grows. 

By  "  manure  "  we  mean  all  substances  which  are  applied 
artificially  to  the  soil  to  increase  its  ability  to  produce  vegetable 
growth. 

As  all  manures  do  not  act  in  the  same  manner,  they  are  some- 
times classified  as  follows  : — 

1.  Nutritive  :  those  whose  own  ingredients  being  taken  up  by 
the  roots  of  plants,  go  to  form  a  part  of  their  structures. 

2.  Solvent  :  those  which  give  to  water  a  greater  power  to 
dissolve  the  plant  food  already  contained  by  the  soil. 

3.  Absorbent  :  those  which  add  to  the  power  of  the  soil  to 
absorb  the  fertilizing  parts  of  other  manures,  of  the  water  of 
rains,  and  of  the  atmosphere  circulating  within  it. 

4.  Mechanical:  those  which  improve  the  mechanical  char- 
acter of  the  soil  ; — such  as  clay  on  sandy  soil,  and  sand  or  peat 
on  heavy  clays,  and  such  as  disintegrate  the  particles  of  the  soil, 
and  make  it  finer. 

Probably  no  manure  acts  in  any  one  of  these  capacities  alone. 
For  instance,  common  salt  not  only  gives  up  its  own  ingredients 
to  plants,  but  being  dissolved  in  the  water  in  the  soil,  it  gives  this 
water  greater  power  to  dissolve  other  plant  food  from  the  surfaces 
of  the  particles  of  earth,  or  from  other  manures  added  to  it.  It  is, 
therefore,  to  be  regarded  as  both  a  nutritive  and  a  solvent  manure. 

Farm-yard  manure,  the  universal  fertilizer,  is  a  direct  source  of 
most    valuable    plant    food;    it    produces,    in    its    decomposition. 


MANURES.  157 

ammonia  and  other  substances,  which,  while  they  feed  the  crop, 
add  greatly  to  the  solvent  power  of  water  ;  as  it  rots  down,  its 
coarser  parts  are  changed  into  compounds  which  are  very  active 
absorbers  or  fixers  of  ammonia ;  and,  by  reason  of  its  fibrous 
texture,  it  loosens  heavy  clays,  and  binds  together  blowy  sands, 
while  its  decomposition  produces  heat  which  warms  the  soil,  and 
its  power  of  absorbing  moisture  from  the  air  keeps  it  moist. 

The  action  of  all  manures  is  so  complex,  and,  in  some  respects, 
so  imperfectly  understood,  that  it  is  not  easy  to  classify  them  by 
any  system  that  is  free  from  objection,  and  as  this  is  a  book  of 
practice  rather  than  of  principles,  it  will  be  best  to  consider  the 
different  common  fertilizers  in  order,  leaving  the  question  of  their 
classification  to  more  purely  scientific  essays.  The  first  in  order, 
in  the  agriculture  of  all  countries  where  domestic  animals  are 
largely  kept,  is,  of  course, 

FARM-YARD    MANURE. 

This  consists  of  the  undigested  parts  of  food  ;  of  those  con- 
stituents of  the  animal's  body  which,  being  expencred  in  the 
vital  processes,  are  discarded  in  the  urine  and  dung  ;  and  of  the 
straw,  etc.,  used  for  litter.  The  first  two  of  these  constituents 
always  bear  a  direct  relation  to  the  food,  and  their  relative  value 
may  be  more  nearly  estimated.  The  third,  the  litter,  is  very 
variable  in  kind  and  in  quantity,  according  as  we  use  much  or 
little  of  straw,  corn-stalks,  leaves,  peat,  sea-weed,  beach-sand, 
etc.,  etc. 

Except  when  peat,  sand,  etc.,  are  used,  stable  manure  contains 
nothing  but  what  has  already  formed  a  part  of  plants,  and  it  con- 
tains every  ingredient  that  plants  require  for  their  growth.  This, 
however,  states  but  one  half  of  the  question.  The  other  half 
— and  a  very  important  one  it  is — is  as  follows  :  a  given  quantity 
of  farm-yard  manure  does  not  contain  all  that  is  needed  to  produce 
the  same  quantity  of  vegetable  matter  that  constituted  the  food 
and  litter  of  the  animals  by  which  it  was  produced. 

A   part  of  their  food  has  passed  into  the  air  in  the  carbonic 


158  HANDT-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

acid  that  they  constantly  throw  off  In  respiration  ;  this  the  new 
plant  must  get  again  from  the  air.  A  part  has  been  resolved 
into  water,  and  has  been  thrown  off  from  the  lungs  or  skin,  or 
has  evaporated  in  the  escaping  moisture  of  the  manure  ;  this 
must  be  taken  bv  the  new  plant  from  the  water  of  its  sap. 
Another  part  has  been  sold  away  in  milk,  wool,  flesh,  and  bone  ; 
and  this,  (the  part  which  demands  the  attention  of  the  farmer,) 
the  new  plant  must  take  from  the  soil. 

If  the  crop  of  a  field  is  fed  to  milch  cows,  and  lOO  lbs.  of 
phosphoric  acid  is  sold  away  in  the  product,  the  manure  must 
contain  lOO  lbs.  less  of  this  necessary  ingredient  than  the  food 
did,  and  if  the  whole  of  the  manure  is  returned  to  the  field,  it 
still  gets  back  lOO  lbs.  less  than  it  gave.  The  next  crop  must 
contain  less  phosphoric  acid, — and  so  be  smaller, — or  it  must  take 
a  fresh  supply  from  the  soil.  In  time,  the  quantity  in  the  soil, 
however  large  it  may  have  been  at  the  outset,  must  be  reduced 
so  low  that  the  crop  can  take  up,  during  its  limited  period  of 
growth,  only  a  part  of  what  it  requires,  and  its  quantity  must  shrink 
in  proportion  to  the  decreasing  supply. 

It  may  DC  in  ten  years,  or  it  may  be  in  a  hundred,  but  the  day 
must  inevitably  come,  when  the  constant  removal  of  more  than 
is  returned  will  lessen  the  ability  of  the  soil  to  produce. 

This  is  the  theory  of  the  exhaustion  of  the  soil,  and  it  is  based 
on  a  law  so  simple,  and  yet  so  inexorable,  that  no  man  can  deny 
its  existence,  or  reasonably  hope  to  escape  the  penalty  of  its  in- 
fraction. The  recuperative  power  of  the  soil  is  very  great,  and 
we  have  many  means  for  amending  or  postponing  the  injury  of 
excessive  cropping;  but  the  use  of  green  crops,  fallows,  thorough 
and  deep  cultivation,  exposure  to  frost,  and  the  whole  array  of 
processes  through  which  we  are  provided  relief,  are  only  so  many 
means  for  more  complete  exhaustion  in  the  end. 

To  what  extent  it  is  advisable  to  increase  the  immediate  fer- 
tility of  the  soil,  without  the  use  of  manure,  must  be  decided  by 
each  man  according  to  his  circumstances.  Any  process  by  which 
this  may  be  accomplished  is  a  process  of  discounting  future  fer- 
tility.     No  farm    from  which  more  of  the  earthy  constituents  of 


MANURES.  159 

plants  is  sold  off  than  is  brought  back,  can  be  perfectly  manured 
by  using  only  the  excrement  of  the  animals  feeding  upon  it. 

These  earthy  constituents  have  a  very  different  value  in  different 
localities.  In  Central  Illinois — where,  as  a  correspondent  of  the 
Country  Gentleman  recently  wrote .  "  Corn  is  the  crop,  every 
time" — they  must  still  be  of  very  little  value.  On  the  island  of 
Rhode  Island,  where  it  pays  to  buy  coarse  stable  m.anure  at  six 
dollars  per  cord,  and  to  expend  a  day's  labor  of  a  man  and  tour 
oxen  iji  hauling  it  to  the  farm,  they  are  of  very  great  value.  In 
Illinois,  where  there  is  still  a  superabundance  of  them  in  the  soil, 
their  value  will  increase  as  the  stock  on  hand  becomes  reduced  by 
future  crops.  In  Rhode  Island,  where,  probably,  as  much  is  now 
.  returned  as  is  taken  away,  their  marketable  value  is  likely  to  be 
reduced  by  the  more  complete  development  of  the  supply  already 
contained  in  the  soil. 

The  question  is,  after  all,  a  purely  commercial  one.  So  long 
as  the  soil,  aided  only  by  the  manures  made  on  the  farm,  yields 
paying  crops,  and  purchased  manures  would  not  increase  the 
product  sufficiently  to  return  their  cost,  it  is  of  course  to  be  rec- 
ommended, that  the  whole  attention  of  the  farmer  be  given  to  the 
careful  husbanding  of  his  home-made  supply.  When  it  becomes 
profitable  to  buy  manure,  (or,  which  amounts  to  the  same  thing, 
to  buy  food  for  the  sake  of  the  manure  it  will  make,)  that  made  on 
the  farm  should  be  still  more  \'igilantly  protected  against  loss,  and 
the  cheapest  means  of  supplying  the  deficiency  must  be  sought. 

So  long  as  the  yield,  with  no  manure,  is  large  enough  to  satisfy 
the  ambition  ot  the  farmer,  even  farm-yard  manure  will  not  be 
used  at  all.  This  is  a  misfortune,  of  course,  but  there  is  no  help 
for  it,  and  there  is  nothing  to  be  gained  by  talking  about  it. 

Within  the  past  twenty  years,  the  question  of  the  use  and 
application  of  farm-yard  manure  has  been  a  good  deal  discussed, 
and  some  new  ideas  on  the  subject  have  been  developed. 

The  most  complete  practical  investigations  were  made  by  Dr. 
Voelcker,  Professor  of  Chemistry  in  ■^he  Royal  Agricultural  Col- 
lege, Circencester,  (England,)  whose  report  was  published  in  the 
^'Journal  of  the  Royal  Agricultural  oociety,"  (vol.  xvii.,)  and  re- 
11 


IGO  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANI>RY. 

published  in  the  "Second  Report  of  the  New  England  Agricul- 
tural Society."  * 

The  examination  extended  over  a  period  of  more  than  a  year, 
and  included  an  investigation  of  the  constituents  of  as  uniform  a 
sample  as  could  be  prepared  of  the  manure  of  horses,  cows,  and 
pigs,  as  ordinarily  combined  in  the  tarm-yard,  in  its  fresh  state ; 
after  long  exposure  to  the  weather  •,  after  fermentation  in  the  open 
air  ;   and  after  fermentation  under  a  tight  shed. 

Careful  analyses  were  made  of  each  lot,  at  intervals  during  the 
whole  time,  and  the  results  were  carefully  summed  up  and  con- 
sidered with  reference  to  their  bearing  on  the  treatment  of  manure 
in  practice. 

I  give  the  conclusions  arrived  at,  partlv  in  Dr.  Voelcker's  own 
words,  and  partly  in  a  more  condensed  form  : — 

1.  "Perfectly  fresh  farm-yard  manure  contains  but  a  k  small 
proportion  of  free  ammonia." 

2.  The  nitrogen  o( fresh  dung  is  mainly  insoluble. 

3.  The  soluble  parts  of  the  manure  are  much  the  most  valuable. 
Therefore,  it  is  important  to  save  the  urine,  and  to  keep  manure 
protected  from  the  rain,  so  that  its  soluble  parts  may  not  be  washed 
out. 

4.  Farm-yard  manure,  even  in  its  fresh  state,  contains  soluble 
phosphate  of  lime. 

5.  The  urine  of  the  animals  above-named  does  not  contam  any 
considerable  amount  of  phosphate  of  lime,  but  this  is  largely  con- 
tained in  the  drainings  of  dung-heaps,  which  are  more  valuable 
than  urine. 

6.  "  The  most  effectual  manner  of  preventing  loss  in  fertilizing 
"  matters  is  to  cart  the  manure  directly  on  the  held,  whenever  cir- 
"cumstances  allow  this  to  be  done." 

7.  "  On  all  soils  with  a  moderate  proportion  of  clav,  no  tear 
"  need  be  entertained  of  valuable  fertilizing  substances  becoming 
"wasted  if  the  manure  cannot  be  plowed  in  at  once.  Fresh,  and 
"  c\'en  wcll-rotteJ  dung,  contains   very  little    free  ammonia  •,   and 

*  "  On  the  composition  of  farm-yard  manure,  and  the  changes  which  it  undergoes 
on  keeping  under  different  circumstances." 


MANURES.  161 

"  since  active  fermentation,  and,  with  it,  the  further  evolution  of 
"  free  ammonia,  is  stopped  bv  spreading  out  the  manure  on  the 
"  field,  valuable  volatile  manuring  matters  cannot  escape  into  the 
"  air  bv  adopting  this  plan. 

"  As  all  soils,  with  a  moderate  proportion  of  clay,  possess,  in 
"a  remarkable  degree,  the  power  of  absorbing  and  retaining 
*'  manuring  matters,  none  of  the  saline  and  soluble  constituents 
"  are  wasted,  even  by  a  heavy  fall  of  rain.  It  may,  indeed,  be 
"  questioned  whether  it  is  more  advisable  to  plow  in  the  manure 
"  at  once,  or  to  let  it  lie  for  sofne  time  on  the  surface,  and  to 
"give  the  rain  full  opportunity  to  wash  it  into  the  soil." 

"  It  appears  to  me  as  a  matter  of  the  greatest  importance  to 
"  regulate  the  application  of  manure  to  our  fields  so  that  its  con- 
"  stituents  may  become  properly  diluted,  and  uniformly  distributed 
"  among  a  large  mass  of  the  soil.  By  plowing  in  the  manure  at 
"  once,  it  appears  to  me  this  desirable  end  cannot  be  reached  so 
"  perfectly  as  by  allowing  the  rain  to  wash  in  gradually  the  manure 
"  evenly  spread  on  the  surface  of  the  field.  *  *  *  *  *  *  j  am 
"  much  inclined  to  recommend,  as  a  general  rule,  carting  the 
"  manure  on  the  field,  spreading  it  at  once,  and  waiting  for  a  favor- 
"  able  opportunity  to  plow  it  in.  In  the  case  of  clay  soils,  I  have 
"  no  hesitation  to  say  the  manure  may  be  spread  even  six  months 
"  before  it  is  plowed  in,  without  losing  any  appreciable  quantity 
"  of  manuring  matters.  *****  *  Qj^  light,  sandy 
"  soils,  I  would  suggest  to  manure  with  well-fermented  dung 
"  shortly  before  the  crop  intended  to  be  grown  is  sown." 

8.  "  Well-rotten  dung  contains,  likewise,  little  free  ammonia, 
"  but  a  very  much  larger  proportion  of  soluble  organic  and  saline 
"mineral  matters  than  fresh  manure." 

9.  "  Rotten  dung  is  richer  in  nitrogen  than  fresh." 

10.  "  Weight  for  weight,  rotten  dung  is  more  valuable  than 
"fresh." 

II  and  12.  During  fermentation,  dung  gives  ofF  organic 
matter  in  a  gaseous  form,  but,  it  properly  regulated,  there  is 
no  great  loss  of  nitrogen. 

13.    During    fermentation    of    dung,  organic  acids    are  always 


162  HANDY-BOOK     OF    nUSBANDRT. 

formed,  and  gvpsum  is  developed,  and  these  fix   the  ammonia  as 
fast  as  it  is  generated. 

14.  "  During  the  fermentation  of  dung,  the  phosphate  of  lime 
which  it  contains  is  much  more  soluble  than  in  fresh  manure." 

15.  Ammonia  is  given  ofF  in  the  heated  interior  of  the  fer- 
menting heap,  but  it  is  arrested  by  the  organic  acids  and  the  gvp- 
sum in  the  colder  external  layers. 

16.  While  ammonia  is  not  given  off  from  the  surface  of  vv ell- 
compressed  heaps,  it  is  wasted  in  appreciable  quantities,  when 
they  are  turned  o\er. 

17.  *'  No  advantage  appears  to  result  from  carrying  on  the  fer 
"mentation  of  dung  too  far,  but  everv  disadvantage." 

18.  "Farm-yard  manure  becomes  deteriorated  in  value  when 
"  kept  in  heaps  exposed  to  the  weather — the  more  the  longer  it  is 
"kept." 

19.  The  loss  from  manure-heaps  kept  exposed  to  the  weather 
is  not  so  much  due  to  the  evaporation  of  ammonia  as  to  the  wash- 
ing out,  by  rains,  of  the  soluble  ammoniacal  salts  and  other  solu- 
ble fertilizing  parts. 

20.  "  If  rain  is  excluded  from  dung-heaps,  or  little  rain  falls  at 
"  a  time,  the  loss  in  ammonia  is  trifling,  and  no  saline  matters,  of 
"  course,  are  removed  ;  but  if  much  rain  falls,  especiallv  if  it 
*'  descends  in  heavy  showers  upon  the  dung-heap,  a  serious  loss  in 
"  ammonia,  soluble  organic  matters,  phosphate  of  lime,  and  salts 
"  01  potash  is  incurred,  and  the  manure  becomes  rapidly  deterio- 
"  rated  in  xalue,  while,  at  the  same  time,  it  is  diminished  in  weight." 

2i.  "Well-rotten  dung  is  more  readily  affected  by  the  dcteri- 
"  orating  influence  of  rain  than  fresh  manure." 

22.  "Practically  speaking,  all  the  essentially  valuable  manuring 
"  constituents  are  preserved  by  keeping  farm-yard  manure  under 
"  cover." 

23.  If  there  is  a  verv  large  amount  of  litter  in  the  dung, 
water  must  be  added  to  it,  by  pumping  or  bv  rain,  to  enable  it 
to  ferment  actively. 

24.  "  The  worst  method  of  making  manure  is  to  produce  it 
"  by  animals  kept  in  open  yards,  since  a  large  proportion  01  valu- 


MANURES.  163 

"  able  fertilizing  matter  is  wasted  in  a  short  time  ;  and,  after  a 
*'  lapse  of  twelve  months,  at  least  two-thirds  of  the  substance  of 
*'  the  manure  is  wasted,  and  only  one-third,  inferior  in  quality  to 
*' an  equal  weight  of  fresh  dung,  is  left  behind." 

Dr.  Voelcker  continued  his  investigations,  especially  as  to  the 
character  of  drainings  of  dung-heaps,  and  published  a  second  valua- 
ble paper  in  the  "  Journal  of  the  Royal  Agricultural  Society  "  of 
the  next  year  (vol.  xviii.)  The  following  are  among  the  con- 
clusions there  arrived  at : — 

"  I.  It  will  be  seen  that  these  drainings  contain  a  good  deal  of 
"  ammonia,  which  should  not  be  allowed  to  run  to  waste. 

*'  2.  They  also  contain  phosphate  of  lime,  a  constituent  not 
"  present  in  the  urine  of  animals.  The  fermentation  of  the  dung- 
"  heap  thus  brings  a  portion  of  the  phosphates  contained  in  manure 
"  into  a  soluble  state,  and  enables  them  to  be  washed  out  by  any 
"  watery  liquid  that  may  come  in  contact  with  them. 

"  3.  Drainings  of  dung-heaps  are  rich  in  alkaline  salts,  especially 
*'  in  the  more  valuable  salts  of  potash." 

"  4.  By  allowing  the  washings  of  dung-heaps  to  run  to  waste, 
"  not  only  ammonia  is  lost,  but  also  much' soluble  organic  matter, 
"  salts  of  potash,  and  other  inorganic  substances,  which  enter  into 
"  the  composition  of  our  crops,  and  which  are  necessary  to  their 
"  growth." 

The  foregoing  statements  convey  a  sufficiently  clear  idea  of  the 
changes  that  result  from  the  fermentation  of  manure,  to  enable 
us  to  understand  the  importance  of  protecting  it  very  carefully 
against  the  action  of  rains,  until  it  is  finally  applied  to  the  land. 

They  furnish,  furthermore,  the  most  convincing  proof  that  a 
A'ery  large  majority  of  American  farmers  manage  the  manure  of 
their  stables  in  the  most  wasteful  and  extravagant  manner  possible. 
Many,  even  of  those  who  attach  great  value  to  manure,  and  pur- 
chase large  quantities  of  grain,  mainly  that  the  dung-heap  may  be 
made  richer,  allow  the  most  valuable  parts  of  their  entire  store  to 
be  stolen  away  by  the  drip  of  their  barn-roofs. 

Dr.  Voelcker's  analysis  of  fresh  farm-vard  manure,  which  is 
given  below,  is  generally  accepted  as  the  best  and  the  most  com- 


104 


ir  V  N  D  Y  -  B  0  0  K     OF    HUSBANDRY. 


plcte  that  has  yet  been  made,  and  as  representing,  probably,  a  fair 
r.veragc  oi  the  composition  of  the  manure  of  a  farm  on  which  are 
kept  the  usual  variety  of  stock.      It  is  as  follows  : — 

COMPOSITION     OF     FRESH     FARM-YARD     MANURE,     (COMPOSED     OF 
HORSE,  PIG,  AND    COW    DUNG,)  ABOUT    FOURTEEN    DAYS    OLD. 


Detailed  Composition  of  Alanure  in  Natural  State. 


Water 

*  S  luble  organic  matter , 

SolubL-  inorganic  matter  (ash)  : 

Sjluble  silica,  (silicic  acid).  . 

Phosphate  oi'  lime 

Lime 

Magnesia 

Potash 

Soda   


Chloride  of  sodium.  .  . 

Sulphuric  acid 

Carbonic  acid  and  loss. 


Sulpliuric  acid 

Carbonic  acid  and  loss. 


237 
299 
066 
on 

573 
051 
030 

055 
218 


I   InS'.>luble  organic  matter 

Insoluble  inoiganic  matter  (ash): — 

Soluble   silica      ->  r    

.       .    ,,       ...        ).  silicic  acid -^ 

Insoluble  silica,  J  I.   

Oxide  of  iron,  and  alumina,  with  phosphates 

(Containing  phosphoric  acid 1 78) 

(Equal  to  bone  earth 386) 

Lime     1 . 1 20 

Magnesia 

Potash ; 

Soda 


.967 
.56. 
.596 


H3 

099 


.061 
.484 


66.17 
2.48 


J-54 
25.76 


4.05 


Whole  manure  contains  ammonia  in  a  free  state.  . 
"  "  "  "  in  form  of  salts. 


.034 
.088 


*  (Jonlaining  nitrogen 149 

Equal  to  ammonia .181 

t  Containing  nitrogen 494 

£>^ual  10  ammonia .599 


MANURES.  165 

According  to  this  analysis,  a  ton  of  manure,  (2,000  lbs.,)  con- 
tains, in  addition  to  1,323  lbs.  of  water  and  515  lbs  of  insoluble 
organic  matter,  (woody  fiber,  etc.,)  the  following  quantities  of  the 
more  valuable  manuring  ingredients  : — 

Ammonia 15.60  lbs. 

Soluble  phosphoric  acid 3-64    " 

Insoluble        «            "    3.56    " 

Potash , I  3.44    " 

Total 36.24    " 

As  stable  manure  in  towns  is  usually  sold  by  the  cord,  I  have 
caused  a  well-trodden  cart-load  of  good  livery-stable  manure,  (in 
which  hogs  had  been  constantly  working,  but  which  contains  the 
usual  proportion  of  straw,)  to  be  carefully  weighed,  and  I  find  a 
cord  of  this  manure  to  weigh  7,080  lbs. 

Taking  7,000  lbs.,  (or  3  1-2  tons,)  as  the  standard  weight  of 
one  cord  (128  cubic  feet)  of  manure,  we  find  it  to  contain, 
according  to  the  foregoing  analysis,  about  the  following  quanti- 
ties : — 

Water 4,632  lbs. 

Insoluble  organic  matter,  (woody  fiber,  &c.) 1,803     " 

Ammonia . .  ce  « 

Soluble  phosphoric  acid     i  a  « 

Insoluble         "             "     12  « 

Potash ^j  ft 

Total  of  the  more  valuable  parts 127    " 

This  seems,  at  first  sight,  to  be  an  exceedingly  small  propor- 
tion of  the  more  valuable  fertilizing  ingredients  ;  yet,  if  we  esti- 
mate them  at  their  market  price,  we  shall  find  that  they  alone  are 
sufficient  to  ^ive  great  value  to  the  manure. 

In  Judd's  "Agricultural  Annual"  for  1868,  (p.  40,)  we  find  the 
following; : — 

"  From  a  comparison  of  the  cheapest  available  sources  of  the 
*'  most  valuable  ingredients  in  manures,  we  give  the  following  as 
*'  not  far  from  fair  prices  by  which  to  estimate  fertilizers  (it  is 


IGG  II  ANDY -BOOK     OF     HUSBANDRY. 

"  well,  in  making  these  estimates,  to  fall  a  little  below,  than  to  go 
*'  abo\  e  the  real  \  alue) : — 

"  Ammonia,  20  cents  per  pound. 

"  Phosphoric  acid,  (insoluble,)  5  cents  per  pound. 

"  Phosphoric  acid,  (soluble,)    14  cents  per  pound. 

"  Potash,  5  cents  per  pound." 

Estimated  at  these  rates,  and  supposing  Dr.  Voelcker's  analysis 
to  be  of  an  average  sample  of  manure,  the  value  per  cord  would 
be:— 

Ammonia,  55  lbs.  at  20c $11  00 

Soluble  phosphoric  acid,  13    *'    "   14c I  8a 

Insoluble        "  "  12     "    "      5c 60 

Potash,  47    ««    "      5c 2  35 

$15   77 

Of  course  the  only  real  dependence  to  be  placed  on  this  calcu- 
lation is  confined  to  the  question  of  comparative  value,  when  con- 
sidering the  relative  advantages  of  different  manures.  Still,  it 
shows,  unmistakably,  that  in  all  localities  where  manures  are  used 
at  all,  that  made  on  the  farm  is  very  much  too  valuable  to  be  kept 
under  the  eaves  of  a  barn,  or  in  a  yard  that  will  not  protect  it  from 
being  washed  away  by  the  rain. 

It  is  difficult  to  believe  that  these  four  constituents  of  average 
farm-yard  manure  are  worth  so  much  as  the  above  estimate,  espe- 
cially when  we  consider  that  the  value  of  the  lime,  sulphuric  acid, 
salt,  and  soda,  of  the  very  large  amount  of  carbonaceous  matter, 
and  all  the  mechanical  effect  of  such  manure,  (rrreater  than  that  of 
any  other,)  are  amply  sufficient  to  repay  all  of  the  labor  of  handling 
and  of  a  long  haul. 

Yet,  is  it  not,  after  all,  this  very  remarkable  money  value  which 
has  so  strengthened  the  opposition  of  "practice"  to  "science.''" 
The  "good  old  stuff"  has  alwavs  been  upheld  bv  farmers  as  the 
great  manure, — almost  the  only  one  that  is  worth  using.  Those 
who  first  commenced  the  advocacy  of  more  scientific  cultivation 
were  led  away  bv  the  glittering  promises  of  chemical  analysis 
of  the  soil  and  the  plant,  and  believed  that  it  would  be  possible 


MANURES.  167 

to  do  away  with  the  use  of  the  more  bulky  manures,  and  to  ac- 
complish the  best  results  by  the  use  of  concentrated  chemical 
compounds. 

The  truth  is  now  known  to  lie  between  these  two  extreme  opin- 
ions, and  all  fertilizers  are  to  be  regarded  as  belonging  to  the  same 
system.  The  same  ingredients  are  of  the  same  value  in  all, — if 
only  their  condition  is  such  as  to  render  them  equally  easy  of 
assimilation, — for  the  nutrition  of  plants  ;  the  same  salts  have  the 
same  solvent  action  ;  the  same  materials  have  the  same  absorbent 
power,  as  affecting  the  soluble  and  volatile  elements  of  plant-food  ; 
and  they  have  the  same  mechanical  effect  on  the  soil.  All  ma- 
nures, therefore,  whether  organic  or  mineral,  are  to  be  measured 
by  the  same  rule,  and  their  value  must  be  estimated  according  to 
their  ability  to  perform  the  various  offices  of  manure. 

So  measured,  farm-yard  manure  is  very  much  the  best,  in  pro- 
portion to  its  price,  of  all  that  v/e  buy  in  the  market.  The  old 
practice  is  justified  by  theory,  and  theory  is  sustained  by  practice. 

Probably  Dr.  Voelcker's  analysis  would  not  exactly  apply  to 
any  other  sample  of  farm-yard  manure  that  could  be  produced. 
Some  would  be  richer  and  others  poorer.  The  variations  result 
from  the  kind  and  quantity  of  food  and  litter  used ;  the  condition 
of  the  animal,  and  the  use  that  is  made  of  its  products  and  of  its 
labor.  • 

The  full-grown  horse  or  ox,  standing  all  day  in  the  stable,  neither 
increasing  nor  decreasing  in  size,  and  fed  just  enough  to  supply  the 
natural  wastes  of  the  body,  produces  manure  which  contains  a  full 
equivalent  of  the  nitrogen  and  earthy  matter  of  its  food. 

If  used  on  the  road,  so  much  of  the  elements  of  the  food  as  are 
contained  in  the  manure  dropped  away  from  home  is  lost.  If 
growing,  by  the  development  of  bone  and  muscle,  a  part  of  the 
nitrogen  and  earthy  constituents  of  the  food  is  kept  in  the  body, 
and  there  is  so  much  less  in  the  manure. 

The  manure  of  a  pregnant  animal  does  not  contain  those  parts 
of  the  food  that  are  taken  up  bv  the  growth  of  the  fetus. 

The  milch  cow  turns  a  portion  of  her  food  into  milk  and  voids 
so  much  less  in  the  manure. 


158  nANDY-BOOK     OF     HUSBAXDRY. 

The  fleece  of  a  sheep  contains  much  that  would  he  valuable  in 
the  dung-heap. 

The  manure  of  poultry  is  less  valuable  in  proportion  to  the 
quantity  of  the  food  that  is  contained  in  the  eggs  laid. 

In  short,  every  product  of  the  animals  of  the  farm,  whether  it 
be  labor,  meat,  bone,  milk,  eggs,  wool,  or  progeny,  takes  away 
from  the  value  of  the  manure,  and  in  proportion  as  these  are  sold 
away,  in  just  that  proportion  will  the  manure  of  the  farm  be  less^ 
valuable. 

Probably  the  least  amount  of  fertilizing  matter  is  removed  where 
only  butter  is  sold ; — next  in  order  would  be  the  fattening  of  full- 
grown  animals. 

As  the  more  valuable  part  of  manure  consists  of  unassimilated 
food,  of  course  its  composition  must  depend  directly  on  the  char- 
acter of  the  food. 

Grain,  which  is  rich  in  nitrogen  and  the  phosphates,  yields 
manure  relatively  rich  in  these  substances. 

Cotton-seed  meal,  and  oil  (linseed)  meal,  being  the  residuum 
after  the  pressing  out  of  the  oil  from  seeds — none  of  the  nitrogen 
nor  of  the  phosphates  having  accompanied  the  oil — make  richer 
manure  than  other  grains. 

Hay  makes  better  manure  than  straw.  These  differences  will  be 
more  precisely  shown  from  the  analysis  of  the  different  sorts  of 
food,  in  another  chapter. 

Of  course,  it  is  not  to  be  expected  that  the  farmer  will  watch 
the  character  of  his  cattle  food  and  the  condition  of  his  animals 
for  the  purpose  of  ascertaining,  minutch ,  the  (]uality  of  his  dung- 
heaps.  He  should,  however,  keep  a  very  close  watch  over  the 
exports  and  imports  of  his  farm,  and  be  careful  that  the  balance 
of  trade  is  not  against  him. 

If  he  sells  away  lOO  lbs.  of  potash,  he  should  buy  back,  in  gram, 
or  green  sand  marl,  or  wood  ashes,  or  stable  manure,  or  in  some 
way,  another  lOO  lbs.  to  take  its  place  ; — and  so  with  all  of  the  more 
valuable  earthy  constituents  of  produce  sold.  If  this  is  not  done, 
there  will  follow — now  or  later — a  deterioration  of  the  soil.  If 
it  will  not  pay  to  replace  the   lost   matter  now,  of  course  it  will 


MANURES.  1G9 

not  be  done  •,  but  when  the  soil  is  once  so  reduced  as  to  need 
manure  to  enable  it  to  bring  paving  crops,  this  process  must  be 
commenced,  unless  by  a  resort  to  clover,  fallows,  etc.,  the  land 
can  be,  for  a  time,  brought  back  to  a  state  of  fertility.  In  this 
case,  the  imperative  need  of  fertilizers  will  be  postponed — not 
rendered  forever  unnecessary. 

So  much  for  the  quantity  and  value  of  the  manure  of  the  stable, 
— which  will  be  increased   or  diminished  according  to  the  quantity^ 
and  quality  of  the  food    consumed, — and   the    purposes  for  which 
animals    are   kept.      The    next  question    is,   how  to    take  care    of 
that  which  we  have. 

By  the  force  of  old  usage,  we  speak  of  all  of  the  manures  of 
the  stable  as  "  yard-manure."  The  farm-yard,  or  barn-vard, 
however,  as  Dr.  Voelcker  has  told  us,  and  as  a  very  little  reason- 
ing will  demonstrate,  is,  under  the  ordinary  circumstances  of  yards, 
the  worst  possible  place  to  keep  or  to  make  manure.  If  the  yard  be 
so  shaped  that  no  drop  of  its  liquid,  even  in  the  heaviest  rains, 
can  escape  from  it,  and  if  the  ground  be  covered  a  foot  deep  with 
swamp-muck,  or  with  a  mixture  of  clay  and  sand,  the  loss  will  be 
very  much  modified  ;  will  sometimes  be  reduced  to  insignificance. 
Ordinarily,  it  is  any  thing  but  insignificant.  In  ninety-nine  out  of 
every  hundred  barn-yards  in  America,  the  manure  is  subjected  to 
an  evaporation  of  volatile  ammonia,  and  to  a  washing  away  of 
fertilizing  soluble  parts  that  must  vastly  reduce  its  value. 

When  we  come  to  speak  of  "  barn  cellar  "  manure,  or  "  shed 
manure,"  we  shall  have  changed  our  practices  for  the  better. 

The  best  place  of  all  in  which  to  store  manure,  until  it  can  be 
carted  on  to  the  land,  is  in  a  tight  cellar  immediately  under  the 
animals  by  which  it  is  made,  where  it  will  absorb  all  of  their  urine, 
and  will  be  protected  from  freezing,  from  the  drying  effect  of 
winds,  and  from  the  action  of  rains.  No  labor  of  handling  and 
forking  over  is  required,  save  what  will  be  done  by  the  hogs  that 
fatten  upon  the  undigested  food,  while  they  mix  and  compost  the 
mass  better  than  any  number  of  forkings  would  do  it. 

Manure    kept    in    this   wav  need   never   be   touched,   nor   even 


170  HANDY- BO  OK    OF   HUSBANDRY. 

looked  at,  until  the  time  comes  to  throw  it  into  the  wagons  to  be 
hauled  out.  If  the  floor  of  the  cellar  is  a  tight  clav  soil,  and  if 
there  be  no  escape  for  the  liquid  portion  of  the  manure  bv  surface- 
draining,  there  will  have  been  no  appreciable  loss. 

When  a  cellar  cannot  be  made,  a  shed  will  be  found  to  be  a 
very  good  substitute.  It  should  be  so  tight  as  to  exclude  all  rain, 
and  its  floor  so  arranged  that  none  of  the  drainings  of  the  manure 
can  flow  awav — should  be  low  enough  to  receive  all  of  the  urine 
of  the  stable. 

To  keep  manure  in  this  wav  will  require  much  more  labor  than 
to  drop  it  directly  into  a  cellar,  and  the  saturation  of  the  whole 
mass  with  the  urine  will  be  far  less  complete  and  uniform  ;  but 
it  will  entail  much  less  loss — very  much  less — than  is  inevitable 
under  entire  exposure  to  the  weather,  in  heaps,  or  spread  in  the 
barn-yard. 

Under  certam  circumstances,  the  best  storage  place  for  the 
manure  of  the  stable  is  the  field  where  it  is  to  be  used.  If  the 
land  is  so  situated,  and  if  the  soil  contains  a  lair  amount  of  clav, 
and  is  in  such  condition  that  the  water  of  heavv  rains  will  wash  the 
soluble  parts  of  the  manure,  not  off  from,  but  into,  the  ground,  the 
surface  of  the  field  is  the  best  place  for  it.  We  can  in  no  other 
way  distribute  the  nutritive  parts  of  the  manure  among  the  parti- 
cles of  the  soil  so  thoroughly  as  bv  allowing  them  to  be  washed  in 
among  them  bv  falling  rains.  The  only  loss  sustained  in  this 
practice  will  be  by  a  very  slight  evaporation  of  ammonia — very 
slight,  because  the  formation  of  volatile  ammonia  will  almost 
entirely  cease  when  the  manure  is  so  spread  as  to  become  too  cold 
for  rapid  decomposition.  The  soluble  ammoniacal  salts,  and  the 
soluble  carthv  parts,  will  be  washed  into  the  soil,  of  which  the  clay 
and  decomposed  organic  matter  have  a  very  strong  absorption 
action,  and  which  will  hold  all  fertilizing  matter  that  niav  coat  its 
particles — very  much  as  the  fiber  of  cloth  holds  the  coloring  matter 
of  dye  stuffs.  To  continue  the  comparison,  the  coating  of  the  par- 
ticles of  soil  is  not  a  "  last  color,"  but  is  rcmo\  ed  bv  the  water  of 
the  sap  in  the  roots  of  plants,  and  is  appropriated  to  their  use. 

The  recommendation  to  spread  stable  manure  directly  upon  the 


MAITURES.  171 

land  as  soon  as  it  is  made,  or  as  soon  as  it  can  be  hauled  out, 
applies  only  to  such  soils  as  are  in  a  condition  to  receive  and  to 
retain  its  soluble  parts.  On  steep  hill-sides,  very  leachy  sands,  and 
over-wet  clays,  the  practice  would  often,  no  doubt,  result  in  loss. 

When  the  ground  is  locked  fast  with  frost,  the  manure  would 
run  away  with  the  water,  that,  unable  to  gain  entrance,  would  flow 
over  the  surface  in  times  of  heavy  rain.  In  the  case  of  thin 
sandy  soils,  there  is  danger  that  it  will  be  washed  down  too  deeply 
to  have  its  best  effect.  On  steeply  sloping  land,  of  course,  the 
water  of  heavy  rains  would  flow  off  over  the  surface,  and  some  of 
the  manure  would  go  with  it. 

To  state  the  case  simply,  wherever  and  whenever  the  water  ot 
rains  and  melting  snows  can  find  its  way  into  the  soil,  the  best  way 
to  use  the  manure  of  the  stable  is  to  spread  it  broadcast  over  the 
surface — except  on  very  light  sandy  soils.  Where  the  inclination 
is  too  steep, — where,  from  springs  or  want  of  drainage,  the  water 
would  be  kept  out  of  the  soil  and  would  flow  away  over  the  sur- 
face of  the  ground,  such  use  would,  probably,  be  about  the  worst. 

Where  the  snow  lies  so  deep  as  to  prevent  the  freezing  of  the 
ground,  and  where,  as  it  melts  in  spring,  it  will  all,  or  nearly  all, 
soak  into  the  soil,  it  is  a  good  plan  to  spread  the  manure  upon  the 
snow  ;  but  it  is  a  very  bad  plan  to  do  this,  when,  from  the  frozen 
condition  of  the  ground,  or  from  its  rapid  inclination,  the  melting 
snow  would  run  away  over  the  surface. 

The  principle  upon  which  the  advantage  and  disadvantage  of 
the  practice  depends  is,  that  the  manure  will  go  with  the  water  in 
which  it  is  dissolved.  If  it  goes  into  a  soil  containing  a  fair  pro- 
portion of  clay  or  organic  matter,  it  will  be  distributed  in  the  best 
places  and  in  the  most  complete  manner  ;  if  it  runs  away  over  the 
surface,  it  will  be  lost. 

Coarse,  unfermented  manure  should  be  spread  upon  the  land 
before  plowing,  and  turned  well  into  the  soil,  where  its  decompo- 
sition will  be  more  rapid  than  if  harrowed  into  the  dry  surface, 
while  its  best  mechanical  effect  will  be  more  completely  and  more 
lastingly  exerted. 

In  the  case  of  thoroughly  rotted   manure,  although  there  are 


J[72  HANDY -no  OK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

good  arguments  in  favor  of  plowing  it  in,  I  am  inclined  to  very 
strongly  recommend  that  it  be  spread  upon  the  furrow, — after 
rolling,  if  the  roller  is  used  at  all  •,  if  not,  after  once  harrowing, — 
and  then  be  thoroughly  wtjrkcd  into  the  surface  with  the  culti- 
vator. Shares'  harrow,  or  common  harrow.  So  treated,  it  will  lie 
where  the  earliest  roots  of  the  crop  will  feel  its  effect,  and  its 
constituents  will  be  more  evenly  distributed  by  rains  than  if  it 
were  more  deeply  covered. 

I  have  lingered  over  this  branch  of  my  subject,  and  have  given 
it  what  may  seem  to  be  an  undue  share  of  attention  ;  but  the  uni- 
versal applicability  and  usefulness  of  manure  made  by  the  domes- 
tic animals,  together  with  its  almost  universal  production,  gi\e 
greater  importance  to  the  methods  of  its  preservation  and  use  than 
attaches  to  any  other  fertilizer. 

There  remains,  still,  one  question  connected  with  the  manure 
of  the  farm  that  is  of  some  consequence.  That  is,  as  to  the  rela- 
tive value  of  the  excrements  of  different  animals.  The  broad 
statement  of  the  case  is,  that  the  quality  of  the  manure  depends 
on  the  food,  and  not  on  the  animal  by  which  it  is  consumed  ; 
that  is,  no  matter  what  animal  it  may  be  to  which  we  feed  a 
bushel  of  corn,  if  he  is  of  mature  age,  not  increasing  in  any  of 
his  parts,  be  he  horse,  ox,  sheep,  or  hog,  he  will  return,  in  his  ma- 
nure, the  full  equivalent  of  the  nitrogen  and  earthy  parts  of  his 
food.  In  proportion  as  parts  of  his  food  are  taken  to  make  bone, 
flesh,  wool,  etc.,  the  manure  will  be  of  less  value  ;  but  the  bones 
of  a  horse  do  not  differ  materially  from  those  of  other  animals, 
nor  does  his  muscle.  The  difference  of  fertilizing  power  must  be 
attributed,  mainly^  to  a  difference  of  food.  Still,  the  completeness 
of  digestion  varies  somewhat,  in  the  various  species,  and  this  has 
an  effect  on  the  character  of  the  manure — more,  however,  on  the 
rapidity  than  on  the  amount  of  its  action. 

There  is  not  very  much  to  be  said  as  to  the  use  to  be  made  of 
the  difTcrent  manures,  when  well  rotted,  save  with  reference  to 
that  of  the  pig-sty,  which  should  never  be  used,  no  matter  how 
thoroughly  decomposed  it  may  be,  for  any  of  the  hrassica  tribe, 
(cabbage,  cauliflower,  ruta-baga,  or  any  of  the  smooth-leaved  tur- 


MAXURES.  173 

nips,)  as   it   is   quite   likely  to  cause  the   disease   known  as  "  club- 
foot,"*or  "  finger  and  toe." 

POULTRY    MANURE. 

The  droppings  of  poultry  deserve  especial  consideration,  as  the 
richest,  most  concentrated,  and  most  active  of  all  manures  pro- 
duced on  the  farm. 

This  superiority  arises  from  two  causes.  Fowls  live  on  the 
most  concentrated,  the  richest  food — mainly  seeds  and  insects, 
and  they  void  their  solid  and  liquid  excrement  together,  or  rather, 
the  urine  is  solid,  combined  with  the  evacuations  of  the  bow- 
els, or  dung,  and  the  whole  is  of  uniform  quality  and  of  great 
richness.  Under  the  best  circumstances,  (when  dry,)  it  is  often 
nearly  equal  to  Peruvian  guano,  which  is  worth  ^85  per  ton. 

It  has  been  stated  that  on  land  that  is  naturally  good,  but 
exhausted  by  cultivation,  the  excrement  of  a  given  number  of 
fowls  will  produce  enough  extra  corn  to  feed  them  for  a  whole 
year. 

As  a  very  large  part  of  the  manure  of  birds  is  already  soluble, 
it  is  very  much  reduced  in  value  by  exposure  to  the  rain  ;  while, 
if  it  accumulates  in  too  large  quantities, — remaining  damp, — its 
decomposition  is  very  rapid,  and  very  exhausting,  inasmuch  as  it 
does  not,  like  coarse  stable  manure,  contain  a  large  amount  of  car- 
bonaceous matter,  capable  of  assuming  an  absorbent  form  on  its 
decay.  When  ammonia  is  formed  by  the  decomposition  ot  this 
manure,  it  is  much  more  free  to  escape  than  when  formed  in  a  heap 
of  the  droppings  of  the  stable. 

The  best,  most  simple,  and  most  practicable  way  to  protect 
poultry  manure  against  loss  is  to  have  a  floor  of  loose  earth  in  the 
roosting-house,  under  the  perches,  and  to  spade  in  the  droppings 
every  itw  days.  This  will  entirely  prevent  the  escape  of  the 
fertilizing  gases,  as  well  as  of  all  offensive  effluvia,  and  the  whole 
depth  of  the  spaded  earth  will  become  as  rich,  in  time,  as  the 
droppings  themseh'es. 


174  HANDY- BOOK    OF    UUSBAXDRY. 


NIGHT-SOIL. 


The  empire  of  Japan,  with  an  area  about  equal  to  that  of  some 
of  our  smaller  States,  has  a  population,  probably,  equal  to  that  ot 
the  whole  United  States.  For  thousands  of  years,  its  small  hand- 
tilled  fields,  without  the  importation  of  a  grain  of  food  from  any 
foreign  source,  have  supported  its  teeming  millions  in  comfort  and 
plenty.  Shut  off,  until  within  a  few  years,  from  commercial^ 
intercourse  with  the  nations  of  the  West,  this  remarkable  people 
have,  like  the  Chinese,  maintained  themselves  in  sober  and  indus- 
trious prosperity,  while  they  have  achieved  a  civilization,  different 
from  ours,  it  is  true,  and  to  be  measured  b\-  a  different  standard, 
but  which  has,  far  more  successfully  than  that  of  America  or  of 
Europe,  compassed  the  comfortable  subsistence  of  all  classes  of  a 
dense  population. 

The  secret  of  their  ability  to  accomplish  what  the  agriculture 
of  our  more  favored  race  has  failed  to  secure,  is  to  be  found  in  the 
fact  that  the  rule  of  their  life  and  of  their  industry  has  always  been 
to  allow  no  element  of  the  fertility  of  their  soil  to  go  to  waste.  Pro- 
hibited by  their  religion  from  eating  flesh,  milk,  butter,  or  cheese, 
and  with  farms  so  small  as  to  forbid  the  use  of  draught  animals, 
almost  their  only  source  of  manure  is  found  in  the  vegetable  food 
and  the  fish  which  they  themselves  consume. 

Human  excrement,  which  we  name  only  in  an  undertone,  and 
which,  when  we  consider  it  at  all,  we  generally  hurry  into  the 
nearest  stream  of  water,  is  to  them  the  foundation-stone  of  subsist- 
ence. It  is  their  chief  prop  in  all  of  their  culti\ation.  Their 
methods  of  collecting,  preserving,  and  applying  it  are  any  thing  but 
delicate,  but  they  are  safe  and  sure,  and  without  them,  or  their 
equivalent,  Japan  would  long  ago  have  gone  the  way  of  ancient 
Rome. 

Disregarding  the  lessons  of  the  past,  (and  of  the  present,  as 
shown  in  the  East,)  the  British  Empire  is  now  preserving  itself 
from  annihilation  only  by  the  commerce  which  brings  bread  and 
manure  from  all  parts  of  the  world  to  supply  the  enormous  waste 
that  swallows  up  nearly  every  atom  of  the  food  of  its  population. 


MANURES.  175 

Equally  disregarding  the  same  lessons,  we,  with  a  newer  soil, 
and  a  more  remote  necessity  for  economy,  so  long  as  the  crops  of 
our  fields  bring  present  money,  are  heedless  of  future  want  for  our- 
selves or  for  posterity. 

In  the  "American  Agricultural  Annual"  for  1868,  there  was 
published  an  article  of  mine  on  "  Sewers  and  Earth  Closets,  and 
their  Relation  to  Agriculture,"  from  which  article  the  following 
is  extracted  : — 

"  The  average  population  of  New  York  City — Including  Its 
"temporary  visitors — is,  probably,  not  less  than  1,000,000.  This 
*'  population  consumes  food  equivalent  to  at  least  30,000,000 
*' bushels  of  corn  in  a  year.  Except  the  small  proportion  that  is 
"  stored  up  in  the  bodies  of  the  growing  young,  which  is  fully  ofF- 
*'  set  by  that  contained  In  the  bodies  of  the  dead,  the  constituents 
*'  of  the  food  are  returned  to  the  air  by  the  lungs  and  skin,  or  are 
"  voided  as  excrement.  That  which  goes  to  the  air  was  originally 
"  taken  from  the  air  by  vegetation,  and  will  be  so  taken  again — 
"  here  Is  no  waste.  The  excrement  contains  all  that  was  furnished 
"  by  the  mineral  elements  of  the  soil  on  which  the  food  was  pro- 
"  duced.  This  all  passes  Into  the  sewers,  and  Is  washed  Into  the 
*'  sea.      Its  loss,  to  the  present  generation,  is  complete. 

"  In  the  present  half-developed  condition  of  the  world,  there  is 
"  no  help  for  this.  The  first  duty  in  all  towns  is  to  remove  from 
"the  vicinity  of  habitations  all  matters  which  by  their  decomposi- 
"  tlon  would  tend  to  produce  disease.  The  question  of  health  Is, 
"  of  course,  of  the  first  Importance,  and  that  of  economy  must  fol- 
"  low  it ; — but  it  should  follow  closely,  and  perfect  civilization 
"  must  await  Its  solution. 

"  Thirty  million  bushels  of  corn  contain,  among  other  minerals, 
"  nearly  seven  thousand  tons  of  phosphoric  acid,  and  this  amount 
"Is  annually  lost  in  the  wasted  night-soil  of  New  York  City.* 

*  "  Other  mineral  constituents  of  food — important  ones,  too — are  washed  away  in  even 
"  greater  quantities  through  the  same  channali  ;  but  this  element  h  thz  bejt  for  illustra- 
"  tion,  because  its  effect  in  manure  is  the  most  striking,  even  so  small  a  dressing  as 
"  twenty  pounds  per  acre  producing  a  marked  effect  on  all  cereal  crops.  Ammonia,  too, 
"which  is  so  important  that  it  is  usual  in  England  to  estimate  the  value  cf  manure  in 
"exact  proportion  to  its  supply  of  this  element,  is  largely  yielded  by  human  excrement." 
12 


176  IIANDT-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"  Practically,  the  human  excrement  of  the  whole  country  is 
"nearly  all  so  disposed  of  as  to  be  lost  to  the  soil.  The  present 
"  population  of  the  United  States  is  not  far  from  35,000,000.  On 
"  the  basis  of  the  aboye  calculation,  their  annual  food  contains 
*'  oyer  200,000  tons  of  phosphoric  acid,  being  about  the  amount 
"  contained  in  900,000  tons  of  bones,  which,  at  the  price  of  the 
"  best  flour  of  bone,  (for  manure,)  would  be  worth  over  $50,000,000. 
"  It  would  be  a  moderate  estimate  to  say  that  the  other  constitu- 
"  ents  of  food  found  in  ni2;ht-soil  are  of  least  equal  yalue  with  the 
"other  constituents  of  the  bone,  and  to  assume  $50,000,00035 
"  the  money  yalue  of  the  wasted  night-soil  of  the  United  States. 

"  In  another  yiew,  the  importance  of  this  waste  cannot  be  es- 
"  timated  in  money.  Money  yalues  apply  rather  to  the  products 
"  of  labor  and  to  the  exchange  of  these  products.  The  waste  of 
"  fertilizing  matter  reaches  farther  than  the  destruction  or  exchange 
^'  of  products  ; — it  lessens  the  ability  to  produce. 

"  If  mill-streams  were  failing  year  by  year,  and  steam  were 
"yearly  losing  force,  and  the  ability  of  men  to  labor  were  yearly 
"  growing  less,  the  doom  of  our  prosperity  would  not  be  more 
"plainly  written  than  if  the  slow  but  certain  impoverishment  of 
*'  our  soil  were  sure  to  continue. 

*'  Fortunately,  it  will  not  continue  always.  So  long  as  there  are 
"  virgin  soils  this  side  of  the  Pacific,  which  our  people  can  ravage 
"  at  will,  thoughtless  earth-robbers  will  move  West  and  till  them. 
*'  But  the  good  time  is  coming,  when  (as  now  in  China  and  in 
"  Japan)  men  must  accept  the  fact  that  the  soil  is  not  a  warehouse 
"to  be  plundered — only  a  factory  to  be  worked.  Then  they 
"  will  save  their  raw  material,  instead  of  wasting  it,  and  aided  by 
"  nature's  wonderful  loom,  will  weave,  over  and  over  again,  the 
"  fabric  by  which  we  live  and  prosper.  Men  will  build  up  as  fast 
"  as  men  destroy,  old  matters  will  be  reproduced  in  new  forms, 
"  and  as  the  decaying  forests  feed  the  growing  wood,  so  will  all 
"  consumed  food  \  icld  food  again. 

"  The  stupendous  sewers  which  have  just  been  completed  in 
"  London,  at  a  cost  of  $20,000,000,  and  which  challenge  admira- 
*■*■  tion,  as  monuments    of   engineering   achievement,  are    a  great 


MANURES.  177 

"  blessine;  to  that  filth-accursed  town,  and  in  the  absence  of  any 
"thina;  better,  they  might,  with  advantage,  be  imitated  elsewhere. 
"  Thev  have  had  an  excellent  effect  on  the  health  of  the  popula- 
"  tion,  bv  removing  a  prolific  cause  of  typhoid  fever  and  other 
"  fatal  diseases.  As  anx)rding  needed  relief  from  malaria,  they  are 
"  of  immense  importance.  Still,  they  are  a  great  (although  neces- 
"  sarv)  evil,  inasmuch  as  they  wash  into  the  sea  the  manurial 
"  product  of  3,000,000  people,  to  supply  whom  with  food  requires 
"  the  importation  of  immense  quantities  of  grain  and  manure. 

"  The  wheat-market  of  one-half  the  world  is  regulated  by  the 
''  demand  in  England.  She  draws  food  from  the  Black  Sea,  and 
"  from  California ;  she  uses  most  of  the  guano  of  the  Pacific 
"  islands  ;  she  even  ransacks  the  battle-fields  of  Europe  for  human 
"  bones,  from  which  to  make  fresh  bones  for  her  people  ;  and,  in 
"  spite  of  all  this,  her  food  is  scarce  and  high,  and  bread-riots 
"  break  out  in  her  towns. 

"  An  earnest  efix)rt  is  now  being  made  to  use  the  matters  dis- 
"  chars;ed  through  these  sewers  for  the  fertilizing  of  the  lands 
"  toward  the  eastern  coast.  For  this  purpose  it  is  intended  to 
"  build  a  sewer  fortv  miles  long,  and  nine  and  a  half  feet  in 
"  diameter,  which,  with  the  incidental  expenses  of  its  construction 
"and  management,  will  cost  about  J;>  10,000,000.  The  Sewage 
"  Company  have  a  farm  at  Barking,  on  which  thev  have  cx- 
"  perimented  very  successfully,  one  acre  of  their  irrigated  mead- 
"  ows  having  produced  nine  tons  of  Italian  rye  grass  in  twenty- 
"  two  days,  and  fifty  tons  during  the  past  season  up  to  Aun;ust 
"  15,  with  a  prospect  that  the  yield  for  the  whole  season  v/ill  be 
."  at  least  seventy  tons  from  a  single  acre. 

"  The  system  of  sewage  irrigation  has  earnest  adherents,  and 
"  equally  earnest  opposers.  It  does  seem  a  pity,  that  for  e\'ery 
"  pound  cf  excrement  given  to  the  land,  three  or  four  hundred 
"  pounds  of  water  must  go  with  it,  and  it  13  probable  that  such 
"  highly  diluted  manure  can  be  used  with  ad\antan;c  only  en  t^ra::s 
"  crops.  It  is  further  asserted,  that  as  the  best  results  can  be 
"  obtained  only  by  the  application  of  from  6,000  to  10,000  tons 
"  of  the  liquid   per  acre,  the    cost  of  the  process    must   prevent  its 


178  HAXDY-BOOK    OF    IIUSBAXDRT. 

"  general  adoption.  However,  the  scheme  is  about  to  be  thor- 
"  oughly  tested,  and  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  its  success  will  be  such 
"  as  to  secure  a  return  to  the  soil  of  a  vast  amount  of  valuable 
"matter,  which,  hitherto,  has  been  worse  than  thrown  awav. 

"•  The  many  attempts  that  have  been  made  to  extract  the  fer- 
*■*■  tilizing  parts  of  the  sewage  from  the  deluge  of  water  with 
"which  they  are  diluted,  have  entirely  failed  of  their  object.  If, 
*'  as  now  seems  probable,  the  best  and  cheapest  way  to  remove 
"waste  matters  Irom  large  towns  is  bv  dilution  in  large  quantities 
"  of  water,  the  efforts  of  agriculturists  must  be  directed  to  the 
"best  means  of  making  use  of  the  mixture." 

"  So  much  for  the  night-soil  of  large  cities.  The  health  of  the 
'  community  demands  that  it  be  remo\  ed,  and  the  prosperity  of 
'  the  country  demands  that  it  be  not  wasted.  To  fulfill  these  two 
'requirements  should  be  the  aim  of  sanitarians  and  political 
'  economists. 

"  But  a  comparatively  small  part  of  the  population  of  the 
'  United  States  live  in  large  cities, — a  far  larger  number  live  in 
'small  towns  and  in  the  country.  For  their  uses  the  regularly 
'  organized  systems  of  sewerage  are  not  available.  Yet  they 
'greatly  need  some  radical  improvement  in  their  privy  accommo- 
'  dations.  Except  in  those  comparatively  rare  cases  in  which 
'  water-works  are  introduced  into  houses,  the  arrangements  for 
'this  purpose  arc  almost  always  offensive  and  wasteful;  and  not 
'  unfrequently  detrimental  to  health,  and  indecent  in  their  character 
'  and  tender cy. 

"  The  problem  of  improvement  is  an  exceedingly  difficult  one. 
'  While,  by  an  enlightened  control,  the  inhabitants  of  cities  can 
'  be  compelled  to  conform  to  certain  requirements,  those  who 
'  live  in  villages  and  on  farms  are  subject  only  to  a  much  more 
'  hx  discipline,  which  stops  far  short  of  the  minuteness  of  the 
'  Mosaic  law  regulating  personal  habits.  If  they  adopt  improve 
'  mentG, — especially  of  the  sort  under  consideration, — it  will  be 
'  because  they  find  it  for  their  own  pecuniary  interest,  or  very 
'  decidedly  for   their   convenience    to  do    so.      No    question    of 


MANURES.  179 

*'  national  economy  will  move  them,  and  they  have  not  generally 
"  been  educated  to  the  importance  of  a  strict  observance  of  the 
"  laws  of  health, — not  always  of  those  of  decency." 

In  continuation  of  the  same  subject,  I  publish  herewith  an 
article  recently  furnished  to  the  Neiu  York  Evening  Post : 

THE     EARTH    CLOSET    AND    ITS    POSSIBILITIES. 

In  the  'Journal  of  the  London  Society  of  Arts^  for  May  1 6, 
I063,  there  is  published  a  series  of  tables  which  had  been  sub- 
mitted by  Dr.  Tudichum,  concerning  the  commercial  value  of  the 
constituents  of  human  excrement.  The  most  curious  are  those 
relating  to  the  composition  of  urine.  He  says  :  "  Taking  into 
"account  that  there  are  many  thousand  persons  who  come  to 
"  London  during  the  day,  but  sleep  without  (and  are  not  enumerated 
*'  as  living  within)  the  metropolitan  districts,  and  deposit  their  fluid 
"  excretion  in  town  ;  also  many  thousands  of  casual  visitors  ;  taking 
*'  further  into  account  the  rapid  increase  of  London,  we  are  justified, 
"  I  think,  in  assuming  that  the  population  of  London  excretes  an 
"  amount  of  urine  and  valuable  ingredients  equal  to  that  of  two 
*' million  adults  or  middle-aged  males." 

Table  XIX.  gives  the  amount  and  value  of  the  fluid  void- 
ings  of  the  population  of  London,  which,  calculated  as  2,000,000 
adults,  makes  per  day  : — 

Urine,  650,000  gallons,  or  2,901  tons,  176  gallons. 

Ammonia  from  urea,  36  tons  at  £60  per  ton  ;    value,  £2,160. 

Ammonia  from  its  salts,  "1 

Ammonia  from  uric  acid,  2.9  tons. 

Am-nonia  from  creatinine,  j    va'.  £l74» 

Ammonia  from  other  nitrogenous  matters,    ] 

Phosphoric  acid,  6.2  tons — £86  i6s. 

Sulphuric  acid,  4  tons — £37  63. 

Chloride  of  sodium,  26  tons — £122  1 6s. 

Potash,  7.3  tons — £133  i-s. 

Lime  and  magnesia,  1,714  lbs. —  17s.  lod. 

Total  urine,  2,901  tons,  176  gallons.      And  in  this: 

Total  solids,  84  tons,  or  one  ton  of  solids  in  34  5  tons  of  urine. 

Total  value,  £2,8  •; 2. 


180  IIANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

Table  XX.  computes  the  annual  amount  and  value  of  the  urine 
voided  in  London,  making  the  total  amount  of  urine  1,052,151 
tons,  and  the  total  solids  contained  therein,  being  I  in  34,  30,  735 
tons,  worth  £34  per  ton. 

Table  XXI.  gives  the  annual  value  of  the  fluid  voidings  of  the 
population  of  London  as  follows  : — 

Summary. 

'From  urea £788,400 

"     ammoniacal  salts *7>9i° 

Ammonia.  ■{       "     uric  acid 9»6+8 

I       "     creatinine 1 5,lo8 

[      "     other  nitrogenized  matters 12,000 

Phosphoric  acid 31,805 

Sulphuric 13,614 

Chloride  of  sodium 44,972 

Potash 86,700 

Lime  and  magnesia 325 


Total £1,030,502 

Value  of  one  ton  of  urine  rather   less  than    £1.      Value  of  annual  urine  ofone  adult 
male  rather  less  than  10  shillings. 

By  this  computation  the  value  of  the  liquid  excrement  of  the 
people  of  the  United  States  would  amount  to  at  least  $50,000,000 
per  annum.  The  value  of  the  solid  excrement  would  be  some- 
what less  than  this.  Of  course,  verv  much  of  this  value  would  be 
wasted  if  the  most  perfect  svstcm  that  our  ingenuity  could  devise 
were  adopted  for  every  community  of  sufficient  size  to  come 
under  any  sanitary  or  economic  discipline.  But  the  amount 
which  mitrht  be  saved  is  of  sufficient  ma(2;nitudc  to  make  the 
subject  one  of  the  most  important  that  we  can  consider. 

It  may  be  objected  that  Dr.  Tudichum's  standard  of  value  is 
too  high.  Some  writers  place  it  at  a  higher  figure,  others  at  a 
lower,  and  it  is  extremely  difficult,  if  not  impossible,  to  make  an 
exact  estimate  ;  at  the  same  time,  the  experience  of  the  world, 
ever  since  agricultural  operations  and  opinions  began  to  be  record- 
ed, shows  that  human  excrement,  and  especially  human  urine,  is 
of  the  utmost  value  as  a  manure. 

Its    economical    application     has    enabled    the    most     populous 


MANURES.  181 

countries  of  tne  world  to  sustain  themselves  without  the  aid  of 
importation,  and  its  waste  has  brought  destruction  upon  the  most 
prosperous  empires.  History  affords  no  example  of  an  exception 
to  the  rule  that  the  careful  use  of  human  excrement  as  manure 
insures  prosperity,  and  that  its  waste  entails  destruction. 

At  a  recent  meeting  of  the  Farmers'  Club  of  the  American 
Institute,  a  paper  on  "  Earth  Closets  "  was  presented  bv  Mr.  A. 
Crandall,  in  which  occurs  the  following  paragraph  :  "  Wasted 
"  excrement,"  says  Liebig,  "  hastened  the  decay  of  Roman  agricul- 
"  ture,  and  there  ensued  a  condition  the  most  calamitous  and  fright- 
"  ful.  When  the  cloacae  of  the  Seven-Hilled  City  had  absorbed 
"  the  well-being  of  the  Roman  peasant,  Italy  was  put  in,  and  then 
"  Sicily  and  Sardinia  and  Africa."  Not  one  of  these  countries  has 
regained  its  lost  greatness  and  prosperity. 

Longer  ago  than  tvv^ice  the  age  of  Rome,  China  was  a  pros- 
perous, industrious,  and  in  many  respects  a  cultivated  country. 
From  that  day  to  this,  every  particle  of  human  excrement  has 
been  almost  religiously  returned  to  the  soil.  Yet,  to-day,  with 
about  one-third  ot  the  world's  population  li\'ing  exclusively  upon 
her  productions,  she  has  less  abject  poverty  than  has  any  other 
country  in  the  world  except  Japan,  where  the  same  practices  pre- 
vail. 

It  is  difficult  to  read  history  in  the  short  chapter  that  our  own 
country  presents,  yet  the  washing  of  towns  into  rivers,  and  of 
rivers  into  the  sea,  is  even  here  telling  an  unmistakable  tale. 
That  myth,  "  virgin  land  of  inexhaustible  fertility,"  is  traveling 
yearly  westward.  Once  it  was  found  in  the  Alohawk  Valley,  then 
on  the  Genesee  Flats,  then  the  Western  Reserve  of  Ohio  and  the 
Miami  and  Sciota  Dottoms,  then  the  wonderful  prairies  of  Illinois, 
then  the  States  bordering  the  Mississippi  River  on  the  West  ;  and 
now,  from  the  very  last  of  these,  comes  the  cry,  which  has  trav- 
eled toward  them  by  steady  steps  from  the  Mohawk  valley,  of  the 
disastrous  effect  of  midge  and  rust  and  Hessian  fly,  and  dry  sea- 
sons and  wet  seasons,  and  the  endless  list  of  calamities  which  we 
rareU'  hear  of  save  on  lands  of  waning  fertility. 

By  a  better   system  of  agriculture,  with    the  aid  of  undeidrain- 


182  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

ing,  subsoil  plowing,  cattle  feeding,  and  rotation  of  crops,  we  are 
fighting  the  fiend  of  exhaustion  with  much  success.  We  are  ran- 
sacking the  remote  corners  of  our  soil's  pores  for  plant  food  which 
is  no  longer  yielded  spontaneously,  and,  in  many  cases,  we 
seem  to  be  regaining  the  original  productiveness.  But  by-and- 
bv,  perhaps  a  hundred  years,  and,  perhaps,  five  hundred  vears 
hence,  we  may  have  exhausted  e\en  this  hidden  fertilitv  of  the 
soil,  for  there  is  nothing  more  certain  than  that  the  material  which 
we  take  from  the  land  and  deposit  in  mid-ocean  will  never  return 
to  the  land  bv  anv  natural  process.  And  until  we  learn  to  care- 
fullv  save  and  faithfullv  return  to  the  soil  the  rejected  elements 
of  our  food,  we  shall  continue  to  follow,  whether  apparently  or 
not,  the  road  which  Rome  has  traveled  before  us. 

It  is  in  consideration  of  the  foregoing  facts  that  we  are  inclined 
to  attach  great  importance  to  the  possibilities  of  the  earth  closet. 
So  long  as  the  use  of  human  excrement  is  degradingly  ofl^ensive, 
neither  American  farmers  nor  American  citizens  will  willingly 
subject  themselves  to  the  annoyance  of  doing  anv  thing  with  it, 
save  to  get  it  out  of  the  wav  bv  the  shortest  practicable  course. 
If  there  are  sewers  to  carry  it  into  rivers,  or  into  the  ocean,  that 
is  all  that  our  highest  civilization  asks.  If  there  are  no  sewers, 
then  kindlv  holes  in  the  ground  serve  to  remove  it  from  sight.  We 
accustom  ourselves  to  its  odors,  and  give  it  no  further  thought 
until  necessitv  compels  us  to  pav  for  its  surreptitious  remo\  al  by 
night.  Its  money  value  is  nothing  ;  the  supply  is  precarious,  and 
the  ofFensiveness  of  the  removal  more  than  offsets  for  its  value  as 
manure.  So  long  as  this  state  of  affairs  continues,  we  cannot 
expect  much  attention  to  be  given  to  the  subject. 

The  earth  closet  has  now  been  so  long  in  use  that  its  value  is 
fully  demonstrated.  Wherever  a  water-closet  might  be  undesirable, 
there  an  earth  closet  will  be  found  an  unobjectionable,  an  economical 
and,  from  a  sanitary  point  of  view,  a  safe  substitute,  requiring  less  at- 
tention than  a  coal  stove.  It  destroys  by  oxidation  much  of  the  organic 
matter  of  the  fceces  committed  to  its  care, — wasting  probably  the 
larger  part  of  its  ammonia.  But  it  holds  fast  to  the  mineral  ele- 
ments,— those  which  were  originally  furnished  by  the  soil, — and  the 


MANURES.  183 

decomposition  of  the  organic  matter  within  the  pores  of  its  earth, 
develops  new  plant-food  hitherto  dormant  therein. 

In  concluding  these  remarks,  it  need  only  be  stated,  in  general 
terms,  that  whatever  process  is  adopted  for  the  economical  saving, 
and  the  proper  application  of  night-soil  as  manure,  its  use  must 
inevitably  be  attended  with  the  best  results,  not  only  on  the  in- 
dividual farms  to  which  it  is  applied,  but  as  most  favorably  affect- 
ing the  agriculture  of  the  whole  country;  and  probably  it  will  be 
found  that  the  use  of  dry  earth  in  some  form,  and  by  means  of 
whatever  appliances  may  be  within  the  most  convenient  reach  of 
the  farmer,  will  afford  very  much  the  most  economical  and  satis- 
factory solution  of  the  problem. 

MINERAL    MANURES. 

By  reference  to  remarks  in  preceding  chapters,  concerning  the 
composition  of  plants  and  their  uses  in  the  animal  economy,  it 
will  be  remembered  that  certain  portions  of  them,  which  consti- 
tute the  ash  left  after  the  burning  of  any  vegetable  matter,  are  of 
a  mineral  character  and  origin  ;  that  is  to  say,  they  exist  in  a 
state  of  nature,  always  and  only  as  constituents  of  the  soil  or  of 
the  rocks  from  which  the  soil  is  originally  formed  ; — and  while 
they  are  absolutely  necessary  to  the  growth  of  plants,  they  can 
be  taken  up  only  by  the  roots  from  the  soil ;  for  they  never  exist, 
except  as  dust,  in  the  air. 

While  these  mineral  or  earthy  constituents  constitute  but  a 
very  small  proportion  of  the  plant,  and  of  the  animal  which  gets 
the  substance  of  its  body  from  the  digestion  of  plants  eaten,  they 
are  absolutely  indispensable  to  all  organic  growth  ;  and  their  im- 
portance in  agriculture  is  by  no  means  to  be  measured  by  the 
extent  to  which  they  are  used.  The  amount  of  potash  required 
in  the  formation  of  the  integral  parts  of  a  blade  of  wheat,  is  so 
small  as  to  escape  any  but  the  most  careful  scrutiny.  Yet  it  is 
absolutely  impossible  to  produce  a  blade  of  wheat  without  furnish- 
ing the  necessary  supply  of  this  apparently  insignificant  element. 
The  same  is  true,  in  a  greater  or  less  degree,  of  all  the  mineral 
parts  of  plant-food. 


184  HAXDY-BOOK    OF    lll'SBANDRY. 

The  analysis  of  the  ashes  of  all  agricultural  plants  shows  that 
they  contain  the  following  substances  : — 

Potash,  Soda,  Lime, 

IVIagncsia,  Sulphuric  acid,    _  Phosphoric  acid,  and 

Silicic  acid.  Oxide  of  iron,  Chlorine. 

Of  these  the  following  are  always  found  in  abundant  quantity 
in  every  even  tolcrablv  fertile  soil, — probably  in  every  soil  that  it 
will  pay  to  attempt  to  cultivate  : — 

Soda,  Sulphuric   acid,  Chlorine,  and  usually 

Oxide  of  iron,      Silicic  acid.  Magnesia. 

These,  then,    need   never  be   taken  into   consideration   in  any 

case  where  the  only  object  is  the  supply  of  the  materials  which 
the  plant  requires. 

With  the  other  elements,  however,  the  case  is  quite  different, 
and 

Phosphoric  acid,  Lime,  and  occasionally 

Potash,  Magnesia, 

require  the  utmost  care  on  the  part  of  the  farmer,  and  a  constant 
vigilance  to  prevent  their  waste,  and  to  restore  always  at  least  so 
much  of  them  as  is  taken  away  by  the  crops.* 

The  analysis  of  any  tolerably  fertile  wheat  soil  will  show  that  it 
contains,  within  a  foot  of  the  surface,  an  amount  of  phosphoric 
acid  sufficient  to  supply  the  needs  of  probably  a  hundred  times  as 
many  bushels  of  wheat  as   could    be  grown  upon   it  in  a   hundred 

*  Probably  the  analysis  of  every  cultivatable  soil  in  the  world  would  show  the  presence 
of  a  large  proportion  of  lime;  and  the  rule  which  requires  the  use  of  lime  as  manure  is 
by  no  means  a  definite  one.  Whether  the  lime  supplied  acts  only  as  a  plant-food,  or 
whether  its  chief  benefit  depends  on  its  action  in  developing  p'.ant-fooJ  already  con- 
tained in  the  crude  soil,  is  not  absolutely  known.  Probjblv,  however,  the  latter 
proposition  is  the  true  one,  inasmuch  as  we  find  that  soils  which  are  formed  almost 
exclusively  by  the  crumbling  of  limestone  rocks  arc  quite  as  much  (and  often  more) 
benefited  by  the  application  of  very  small  quantities  of  burned  lime,  as  are  those  in  which 
analyiis  shows  only  a  trifling  proportion  of  lime  ;  therefore  the  above  is  to  be  understood 
as  being  such  a  statement  of  the  case  as  seems  most  necessary  for  practical  purposes, 
although  not  in  all  respects  scientifically  correct. 


MANURES.  185 

years  without  the  use  of  manure.  Of  this  phosphoric  acid,  how- 
ever, a  very  large  proportion  is  contained  in  the  interior  ot  pebbles 
and  coarse  particles,  or  is  in  such  a  state  of  combination  as  not  to 
be  available ;  for  plants  can  take  up  by  their  roots  only  such 
matters  as  are  exposed  on'the  surface  of  the  particles  of  soil,  and 
of  these  even,  only  such  as  are  sufficiently  soluble  to  yield  to  the 
absorptive  influence  of  the  moisture  which  is  contained  in  and 
about  the  feeding  surfaces  of  the  roots,  and  the  same  is  true  of 
every  other  element  of  plant-food  in  the  soil.  Therefore,  neither 
the  actual  amount  of  material  in  the  soil,  as  shown  by  analysis, 
nor  even  the  amount  which  could  be  dissolved  by  a  strong  acid 
from  the  surfaces  of  the  particles,  is  the  exact  measure  of  the 
amount  which  that  soil  may  be  able  to  supply  to  the  crop  ;  and, 
in  the  absence  of  absolute  knowledge  on  the  subject,  all  that  can 
be  considered  as  strictly  demonstrated  is  : — 

That  the  amount  of  mineral  plant-food  contained  in  any  soil, 
in  such  a  position,  and  in  such  a  condition  as  to  solubility,  as  to  be 
able  to  supply  the  demand  of  roots,  is  always  limited, — limited, 
indeed,  to  such  a  degree  that  no  soil  in  the  world,  which  does  not 
receive  extraneous  supplies  by  means  of  inundation  or  irrigation, 
can,  even  through  the  life-time  of  a  single  man,  be  made  to  pro- 
duce maximum  crops  of  anv  given  plant,  without  the  return  of 
some  form  of  manure,  either  by  the  feeding  of  the  crop  to 
animals  pasturing  on  the  ground,  by  the  death  and  decomposition 
of  the  stems  and  leaves  of  the  plants,  or  by  the  return  of  animal 
manure  or  of  some  form  of  mineral  manure,  which  will  make  up 
the  waste. 

Practice  has  demonstrated,  even  this  early  in  the  history  of  our 
country,  that  in  order  to  cultivate  any  land,  year  after  year  and 
generation  after  generation,  with  success,  it  is  necessary  that 
manures  be  added  to  the  soil  ;  and  more  careful  practice  and  in- 
vestigation have  shown  that  the  most  economical  return  of  manure 
is  such  as  will  supply  in  the  cheapest  form  the  leading  mineral 
elements  that  have  been  removed  by  the  crops  sold  ; — or,  rather, 
the  leading  ones  of  those  which  we  have  stated  above  to  be 
necessary  in  artificial  application. 


186  HAXDY-BOOK    OF    nUSBAXDRY. 

In  nine  cases  out  often,  that  which  is  most  needed,  and  whose 
return  produces  the  best  result,  is  undoubtedly  phosphoric  acid. 
Such  lands,  however,  as  have  been  long  devoted  to  the  cultivation 
of  tobacco,  potatoes,  etc.,  most  need  additions  of  potash  ;  and  in 
almost  all  cases  it  will  be  found  advantageous  to  apply  both 
potash  and  phosphoric  acid.  It  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  we 
are  now  speaking  only  of  the  requirement  of  manure  for  the 
actual  feeding  of  plants.  The  solvent  action  of  certain  sub- 
stances makes  it  frequently  profitable  to  applv  fertilizers  whose 
constituents  belong  to  the  list  given  above  of  matters  which  the 
soil  alwavs  supplies  in  sufficient  quantity.  This  subject  will  be 
discussed  hereafter. 

Phosphoric  acid  being,  then,  the  most  important  mineral  element 
of  foreign  as  well  as  of  home-made  manures,  it  will  be  well  for 
us  to  examine  the  sources  from  which  it  may  be  most  cheaply 
and  most  advantageously  procured,  and  the  best  method  for  its 
application  to  the  soil. 

The  bones  of  animals  consist,  when  thoroughly  dried,  of  about 
two-thirds  earthv  matter  and  one-third  organic  or  combustible 
matter.  The  earthy  part  is  almost  entirely  phosphate  of  lime, 
which  is  also  called  bone  earth,  and  this  consists  of  about  fortv- 
six  per  cent,  of  phosphoric  acid  and  about  fiftv-four  per  cent, 
of  lime.  Bones,  therefore,  are  the  most  common  and  most  pro- 
lific source  of  the  phosphoric  acid  used  in  agriculture  ;  although 
it  is  also  a  very  important  element  of  Peruvian  guano,  and  still 
more  largely  of  what  are  called  phosphatic  guanos,  and  of  the 
phosphatic  deposits  recently  discovered  near  Charleston,  South 
Carolina. 

The  manner  in  which  phosphate  of  lime  is  used  as  a  manure 
affects  in  very  great  degree  its  efficiency,  and  consequently  the 
economy  of  the  application.  To  state  the  case  in  a  single  sen- 
tence, the  finer  the  particles  of  the  manure  the  more  active  and 
the  more  valuable  it  will  be.  In  order  to  attain  the  greatest  degree 
of  fineness,  it  is  found  best  to  manufacture  it  into  what  is  called 
superphosphate  of  lime  ; — that  is,  a  compound  containing  more 
phosphoric  acid   and  less  lime  than  the  simple  phosphate   does. 


MANURES.  187 

The  chemistry  of  the  phosphates  of  Hme  has  been  very  clearly 
set  forth  by  Professor  S.  W.  Johnson  in  his  report  on  manures, 
made  to  the  Agricultural  Society  of  Connecticut,  and  it  may  be 
worth  while  to  reproduce  here,  in  a  very  brief  form,  the  principal 
features  of  this  portion  of  the  report. 

A  single  atom  of  phosphate  of  lime  contains  one  atom  of 
phosphoric  acid  and  three  atoms  of  lime.  Any  process  which 
will  remove  from  the  compound  two  atoms  of  the  lime,  leaving  the 
whole  amount  of  phosphoric  acid,  will  convert  it  into  superphos- 
phate of  lime,  which  is  very  much  more  soluble  than  is  the  origi- 
nal or  basic  phosphate;  and  it  is  the  custom  in  the  manufacture  of 
superphosphate  of  lime  to  apply  such  an  amount  of  sulphuric 
acid  as  will  remove  these  two  atoms  of  lime,  the  result  being  a 
compound  containing  superphosphate  of  lime  and  sulphate  of  lime 
or  gypsum  ;  and  when  no  other  matters  are  added  to  increase  the 
rapidity  of  the  action  of  the  manure,  this  is  the  composition  of 
the  pure  superphosphate  of  lime  of  commerce.  It  contains  very 
much  more  lime  and  sulphuric  acid  than  phosphoric  acid,  but  the 
latter  is  in  such  a  state  of  solubility  as  will  allow  it  to  be  carried 
by  rains  very  readily  into  the  soil,  and  it  applied  while  plants  are 
ac':uallv  growing,  it  may  be  taken  up  by  them  without  delay. 

Ordinarily,  however,  when  superphosphate  of  lime  is  applied 
to  the  soil,  it  immediately  hunts  out  particles  containing  potash 
or  lime  or  magnesia  or  soda,  with  which  its  unsatisfied  phosphoric 
acid  may  again  combine  ;  and  it  is  not  likely  that  the  true  super- 
phosphate ever  remains  for  any  considerable  length  of  time  as  an 
element  of  the  soil  ;  and  the  question  may  readily  arise,  why  is 
it  worth  while  to  resort  to  such  an  expensive  and  troublesome 
process  to  reduce  the  phosphate  of  lime  to  the  superphosphate, 
when  we  are  almost  certain  that  within  a  short  time  after  it  is 
applied  to  the  soil  it  will  have  returned  again  to  the  condition  of 
the  comparatively  insoluble  phosphate  ?  The  reason  why  this  is 
worth  while  is  to  be  sought  only  in  the  degree  of  fineness  to 
which  the  article  is  reduced  by  the  chemical  changes  through 
which  it  has  passed. 

Professor  O.  N.  Rood,  of  the  Troy  University,  at  the  request 


188  HANDY-BOOK     OF    HUSBANDRY. 

of  Professor  Johnson,  measured  under  the  microscope  the  size  of 
the  particles  of  the  finest  bone-dust,  and  of  the  phosphate  of  lime 
which  had  passed  through  the  process  described  above.  He  found 
that  the  smallest  particles  of  bone-dust  would  not  average  less 
than  one  one-hundredth  of  an  inch  in  diameter,  while  the  particles 
of  the  prepared  phosphate  measured  only  one  twenty-three-thou- 
sandth of  an  inch  in  diameter.  If,  as  is  probably  the  case,  the 
degree  of  solubility  of  both  is  the  same,  the  amount  of  surface 
which  the  finer  article  exposes  to  the  solvent  action  of  water  is 
so  infinitelv  greater  than  that  of  the  former,  that  the  total  amount 
which  mav  be  dissolved  bv  the  action  of  a  given  amount  of  water 
in  a  given  time  must  be  almost  inestimablv  greater;  and  we 
find  in  practice  that  the  finest  phosphate  of  lime  that  it  is  pos- 
sible to  produce  bv  the  burning  of  bone,  is  very  much  less  rapid 
in  its  action  than  is  that  which  results  from  the  chemical  processes 
in  use  in  the  manufacture  of  commercial  superphosphate. 

Probably  it  makes  but  little  difference  what  sort  of  phosphate 
of  lime  is  used  in  the  manufacture  of  a  superphosphate, —  whether 
the  original  substance  be  the  earthv  matter  of  bones,  the  phos- 
phatic  deposits  of  South  Carolina,  or  what  is  known  as  Colum- 
bian guano  ;  for,  probably,  the  chemical  action  in  the  use  of  each 
will  be  the  same,  and  the  same  quality  of  superphosphate,  and  of 
the  phosphate  which  is  formed  on  the  application  of  this  to  the 
soil,  will  result. 

Many  directions  are  given  for  the  manufacture  of  superphos- 
phates on  the  farm  by  the  decomposition  and  preparation  of  bones. 
The  best  of  these  is,  perhaps,  the  following,  which  is  given  by 
Dr.  James  R.  Nichols,  in  his  "  Chemistry  of  the  Farm  and  the 
Sea":— 

"Take  a  common  sound  molasses  cask  -,  divide  in  tlie  middle 
*' with  a  saw  ;  into  one-half  of  this  place  half  a  barrel  o^  finely- 
'*  ground  bone,  and  moisten  it  with  two  buckets  of  water,  using 
*'a  hoe  in  mixing.  Have  ready  a  carboy  of  vitriol,  and  a  stone 
"pitcher  holding  one  gallon.  Turn  out  this  full  of  the  acid,  and 
*'  gradually  add  it  to  the  bone,  constantly  stirring.  As  soon  as 
"  effervescence  subsides,  fill  it  (the  pitcher)  again  with  acid,  and 


MANURES.  180 

"  add  as  before  ;  allow  it  to  remain  over  night,  and  in  the  morning 
.''  repeat  the  operation,  adding  two  more  gallons  of  acid.  When 
'■•'the  mass  is  quiet,  add  about  two  gallons  more  of  water,  and 
"then  gradually  mix  the  remaining  half-barrel  of  bone,  and  allow 
"  it  to  rest.  The  next  day  it  may  be  spread  upon  a  floor,  where 
"  it  will  dry  speedily  if  the  weather  is  warm  ;  a  barrel  of  good 
"  loam  may  be  mixed  with  it  in  drying.  It  may  be  beaten  fine 
"with  a  mallet  or  ground  in  a  plaster  mill.  If  several  casks  are 
"  used,  two  men  can  prepare  a  ton  of  excellent  superphosphate 
"  after  this  method  in  a  day's  time.  *****  Much  less 
"acid  is  used  in  this  formula  than  is  demanded  to  accomplish  the 
"perfect  decomposition  of  the  bones  ;  but  it  is  important  to  guard 
"  against  the  possibility  of  any  free  sulphuric  acid  in  the  mass.  " 

Dr.  Nichols  also  gives  the  following  recipe  for  preparing  bones 
for  use  without  reducing  them  to  the  condition  of  a  superphos- 
phate ;  and  bones  applied  to  the  soil,  with  the  addition  of  the 
other  materials  of  the  compound,  cannot  fail  to  constitute  an 
excellent  manure  : — 

"Take  100  pounds  of  bones  beaten  into  as  small  fragments 
"as  possible;  pack  them  in  a  tight  cask  or  box  with  lOO  pounds 
"  of  good  wood-ashes.  Mix  with  the  ashes  before  packing  25 
"pounds  of  slaked  lime,  and  12  pounds  of  sal  soda,  powdered 
"  fine.  It  will  require  about  20  gallons  of  water  to  saturate  the 
"  mass,  and  more  may  be  added  from  time  to  time  to  maintain 
"  moisture.  In  two  or  three  weeks  the  bones  will  be  broken 
"  down  completely,  and  the  whole  may  be  turned  out  upon  a 
"  floor  and  mixed  with  two  bushels  of  dry  peat  or  good  soil,  and 
"after  drying,  it  is  fit  for  use." 

Whether  it  will  pay  the  farmer  to  manufacture  superphosphate 
of  lime,  or  to  reduce  coarse  bones  according  to  the  process  de- 
scribed above,  must  depend  upon  the  amount  of  labor  at  his  com- 
mand and  upon  the  extent  to  which  he  can  profitably  apply  his 
labor  to  other  farm  work  during  the  winter  season.  Probably,  if 
he  has  muck  which  he  might  be  hauling  to  his  barn,  or  any  other 
profitable  work  for  his  hands,  it  will  be  better  to  purchase  such 
superphosphate  as  he  may  require  in  the  general  market  ; — for  the 


190  HANDY- BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

material  required  in  this  domestic  manufacture  will  be  somewhat 
expensive,  and  the  process  more  or  less  troublesome  ;  while  there 
is  no  doubt  that,  except  in  the  most  remote  regions,  good  super- 
phosphate may  be  procured  at  a  cost,  delivered  on  the  farm,  that 
will  be  amply  justified  by  the  result  of  its  application  to  the  crops. 
In  purchasing,  however,  a  farmer  runs  a  considerable  risk  of 
being  swindled  ;  for  nothing  is  easier  than  to  add  to  any  commer- 
cial fertilizer  such  an  amount  of  sand,  sifted  ashes,  or  other 
worthless  material,  as  will  very  much  reduce  its  value.  Still, 
even  the  most  unscrupulous  dealer  in  fertilizers  will  probably 
have  the  wit  to  supply  a  genuine  article  to  any  customer  whom 
it  seems  unsafe  to  cheat  ;  and  if  the  farmer  will  purchase  directly 
from  the  manufacturer,  and  with  the  stipulation  that  every  pack- 
age of  the  fertilizer  shall  analyze  up  to  a  given  standard,  the 
chances  are  that  the  adulterated  article  will  be  reserved  for 
shipment  to  some  other  person  ;  and  I  am  confident  at  the  same 
time  that  there  are  manufacturers  who  conduct  their  business  on 
strictly  honest  principles,  and  who  will  always  send  a  genuine 
article. 

The  superphosphates  of  lime  which  are  sold  in  the  American 
market,  contain,  generally,  a  considerable  proportion  of  ammonia, 
which  adds  to  their  value  for  use  in  connection  with  the  stable 
manure  of  the  farm ;  but  probably,  where  there  is  an  abundant 
supply  of  stable  manure,  it  would  be  cheapest  to  invest  the  whole 
amount  of  purchase-money  in  the  mineral  matters,  as  it  is  these 
which  it  is,  beyond  all  question,  the  most  important  to  procure 
from  external  sources. 

Concerning  the  method  of  application  of  superphosphate  of 
lime,  two  opinions  prevail.  One  is,  that  it  is  better  to  spread  it, 
if  possible,  with  the  use  of  a  broadcast  sower  evenly  over  the 
whole  surface  of  the  land,  so  that  no  part  of  the  soil  may  fail 
to  receive  a  certain  amount.  And  the  other  is,  that  it  is  pref- 
erable to  compost  it  with  stable  manure,  which,  undoubtedly, 
adds  to  its  efficiency,  but  is  subject  to  the  objection  that  as  stable 
manure  is  always  more  or  less  lumpy,  and  is  necessarily  spread  by 
hand,  its  distribution  when  applied  in  the  field  is  less  uniform  than 


MANURES.  191 

it  is  desirable  that  it  should  be.  In  either  case  the  manure  should 
be  spread  broadcast  over  the  whole,  surface,  and  not  applied 
directly  t>o  the  hill  or  furrow,  for  the  reason  that  phosphoric  acid 
is  most  necessary  in  the  development  of  the  seed  of  the  plant, 
and  generally  during  the  latter  stages  of  its  growth,  at  a  time 
when  the  roots  are  supposed  to  occupy  every  part  of  the  soil,  and 
when  many  of  them,  at  least,  would  have  passed  beyond  the 
narrow  limits  of  the  hill  or  furrow. 

The  application  of  phosphoric  acid  is  not  most  profitable  when 
made  most  strictly  in  accordance  with  the  generally  accepted  scien- 
tific theories  concerning  its  use  by  plants;  for  it  is  shown  by  long 
experience  that  it  is  not  so  active  a  manure  for  wheat  as  ammonia 
is,  although  wheat  contains,  in  the  ashes  of  its  seed,  about  50  per 
cent,  of  phosphoric  acid  ;  and  that  it  is  a  most  valuable  stimulant 
for  turnips,  although  the  ashes  of  these  contain  only  about  7  per 
cent.  Possibly  the  reason  for  this  apparent  discrepancy  between 
theory  and  practice  is  to  be  found  in  the  fact  that  during  the  early 
stages  of  growth,  when  the  plant  is  acquiring  its  ability  to  make 
use  of  the  materials  already  contained  in  the  soil,  the  phosphoric 
acid  is  more  necessary  to  the  turnip  than  to  the  wheat  ;  whereas, 
the  wheat,  by  the  time  it  requires  a  considerable  proportion  of 
phosphoric  acid,  is  in  a  condition  to  take  up  an  amount  which 
could  not  be  made  use  of  by  the  young  turnip  plant. 

We  often  hear  farmers  make  a  distinction  between  manures 
which  act  quickly,  and  those  which  are  lasting  ;  and  in  ordinary 
practice,  the  preference  is  almost  invariably  given  to  the  "lasting" 
manure.  This  idea  is  not  founded,  in  my  opinion,  upon  reason  ; 
for  it  may  be  stated,  as  a  general  principle,  that  manures  are  last- 
ing only  in  proportion  as  they  are  "lazy."  For  example: 
Twenty  dollars'  worth  of  whole  bones,  spread  upon  an  acre  of 
land,  would  not  produce  a  very  marked  effect  upon  the  crop  im- 
mediately following  the  application  ;  while  twenty  dollars'  worth 
of  fine  bone-dust  would  probably  produce  an  excellent,  and  an 
equal  value  of  a  good  superphosphate — a  capital  result.      On  the 

other  hand,  the  effect  of  the  whole  bones  would  be  perceptible  on 
13 


192  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

the  crops  of  a  life-time;  that  of  the  fine  bones  would  probably 
disappear  or  grow  greatly  less  after  five  or  ten  years  •,  and  that  of  the 
superphosphate  would  probably  not  be  very  marked  after  two  or 
three  years.  It  is  the  old  story  of  "the  nimble  sixpence  and  the 
slow  shilling.  "  In  either  case  the  material  applied  to  the  soil 
produces  a  given  amount  of  effect  on  vegetation  ;  that  in  the 
superphosphate  being  developed  within  two  or  three  years,  results 
in  a  few  large  crops  which  are  immediately  available,  and  the  extra 
money  which  they  produce  may  be  in  part  applied  to  the  renewal  of 
the  manure  ;  the  whole  bones,  on  the  other  hand,  produce  the 
same  amount  of  growth,  only  during  a  long  series  of  years,  while 
the  interest  on  their  cost,  and  the  interest  on  the  value  and  on  the 
cost  of  cultivating  the  land,  are  constantly  running  on.  The 
chance  for  profit  is  very  much  greater  in  the  case  in  which  large 
immediate  returns  give  through  the  current  year  a  greater  amount 
of  increase  or  profit  above  the  necessary  expenses  and  loss  of 
interest. 

Farmers  also  speak  of  superphosphate  of  lime,  Peruvian  guano, 
and  other  intense  manures  as  being  exhausting  ;  and  there  is  no 
doubt  that  in  the  experience  of  many  districts,  as,  for  instance, 
those  parts  of  Maryland  where,  during  a  few  years,  the  yield  of 
wheat  was  raised  to  a  very  high  figure  by  the  use  of  Peruvian  guano, 
and  where  it  was  found  that,  after  these  few  years,  guano  failed 
to  produce  a  beneficial  result,  they  have  a  good  apparent  reason 
for  their  opinion.  Any  manures  which  do  not  supply  all  that  the 
plant  requires,  or  all  at  least  of  such  elements  as  the  soil  can 
furnish  in  only  a  limited  degree,  are  exhausting  manures.  For 
instance,  there  may  be  in  the  soil  a  certain  amount  of  phosphoric 
acid  available  for  the  uses  of  plants,  and  in  the  ordinary  course  of 
growth  without  manure  a  sufficient  addition  to  this  supply  may  be 
made  available  by  natural  chemical  processes  to  constantly  furnish 
fair  average  crops,  that  is,  to  furnish  the  phosphoric  acid  required 
by  such  crops  as  grow  in  the  natural  condition  of  the  land,  of 
which  the  capacity  may  be  kept  at  a  low  point  owing  to  a  defi- 
ciency of  potash,  for  instance. 

Now,  if  we  apply  any  manure  (such  as  wood  ashes)  which  supplies 


MANURES.  193 

potash  in  considerable  quantity,  the  result  will  be  the  production 
of  as  large  a  crop  as,  in  view  of  the  composition  and  circumstances 
of  the  soil,  it  is  possible  for  potash  to  produce,  and  the  crops  may 
be  doubled  or  quadrupled,  as  the  result  of  the  application  of  the 
potash  alone.  But  they,  at  the  same  time,  remove  from  the  soil 
double  or  quadruple  the  quantity  of  phosphoric  acid  that  was 
required  by  the  smaller  crop  ;  and  the  result  is,  that  while  the 
manure  has  by  no  means  had  the  effect  of  exhausting  the  soil, 
but  has  rather  added  to  its  valuable  ingredients,  the  crops  produced 
in  consequence  of  the  use  of  that  manure  have  exhausted  the  soil 
of  some  ingredient  which  the  manure  did  not  supply,  namely, 
phosphoric  acid. 

In  the  case  cited  above — that  of  the  production  of  large  crops 
of  wheat  by  the  aid  of  Peruvian  guano  in  Maryland — it  is  prob- 
able that  the  ammonia  of  the  guano  increased  so  largely  the  pro- 
duction of  wheat,  that  the  soil  was  robbed,  in  the  course  of  a  few 
years,  of  elements  which  the  guano  did  not  supply  in  sufficient 
quantity  ;  and,  these  elements"  being  once  removed,  no  amount  of 
any  other  constituent  would  suffice  for  the  growth  of  plants  to 
which  they  are  absolutely  requisite. 

Therefore,  in  the  use  of  either  superphosphate  of  lime,  or  of 
bones  or  bone-dust,  the  principal  available  ingredient  supplied  being 
phosphoric  acid  (and  perhaps  ammonia),  the  soil  may,  as  a  con- 
sequence of  the  greater  production,  be  robbed  of  potash,  or  some 
other  element,  to  such  an  extent  as  to  be  permanently  injured. 
It  is  wrong,  however,  in  this  case  to  blame  the  manure  for  the 
result.  We  should  rather  blame  ourselves  for  having  pursued  such 
a  svstem  of  cultivation  as  has  taken  away  elements  of  the  soil's 
fertility,  trusting  to  some  other  element  to  supply  its  place. 

To  use  a  homely  illustration  of  our  meaning,  we  will  take  the 
case  of  a  merchant  tailor  who  receives  a  large  accession  to  his  stock 
in  the  form  of  woolen  cloth,  and  has  not  the  means  of  increasing, 
materially,  the  quantitv  of  his  other  supplies.  If  stimulated  by 
this  addition  to  his  stock,  he  takes  an  army  contract  for  overcoats, 
and  employs  a  sufficient  number  of  hands,  under  contract  for  the 
season,  to  make  them,  the  result  will  probably  be  that  he  will  run 


194  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

out  of  buttons  and  grogram,  and  be  obliged  to  throw  up  his  contract, 
and  to  expend  the  last  dollar  of  his  substance  in  compounding  with 
his  hands,  with  whom  he  is  not  able  to  keep  his  engagements.  It 
would  be  as  just  to  blame  the  cloth  for  ruining  the  tailor  as  it  is 
to  blame  Peruvian  guano  for  exhausting  the  land.  It  is  very  well 
to  have  a  large  amount  of  the  purely  stimulating  elements  ot  ma- 
nure, but,  unless  the  farmer  keeps  a  sharp  eye  to  the  "  buttons  and 
grogram,"  he  will  wish  that  he  had  never  seen  any  thing  but  the 
"good  old  stuff"  of  the  barnyard,  and  had  been  content  with  the 
ordinary  retail  trade  on  which  he  was  making  a  comfortable 
living. 

But,  on  the  other  hand,  it  is  as  easy  for  him  to  procure  what  is 
necessary  to  keep  up  the  balance  of  his  stock  in  trade  as  it  would 
be  for  the  tailor  ;  and  he  would  make  a  grave  mistake,  if,  by 
reason  of  any  bugbear  of  exhaustion,  he  neglected  to  use  every 
available  fertilizer  which,  by  any  means,  might  add  to  the  bulk  and 
value  of  his  productions. 

Concerning  the  importance  of  phosphoric  acid,  so  much  has 
been  said,  incidentally,  in  treating  of  the  use  of  night-soil  and 
stable  manure,  that  it  is  not  worth  while  to  give  more  space  to  its 
consideration  here. 

It  is  a  capital  manure  in  whatever  form  it  may  ofTer  itself  ;  and 
it  is,  furthermore,  the  manure  of  which  all  grain  and  meat  produ- 
cing farms  stand  in  the  greatest  need.  Its  importance  to  the 
agriculture  of  the  country  may  be  safely  assumed  to  exceed  that 
of  all  the  other  elements  of  imported  or  of  home-made  fertilizers — 
that  is,  if  we  take  into  consideration,  not  the  results  of  a  few  years, 
but  the  prosperity  of  the  country  for  generations. 

Potash. — Second  in  importance  among  the  earthy  ingredients  of^ 
plants  stands  the  article  which  is  familiar  to  every  one  as  "  potash." 
This  is  known  to  us  all  as  the  chief  constituent  of  the  lye  which 
results  from  the  leaching  of  wood  ashes  ;  and,  c\  en  as  we  find  it 
to  a  greater  or  less  extent  in  the  ashes  of  all  wood  burned  ior  fuel, 
so  in  the  laboratory  the  chemist  finds  it  as  a  more  or  less  important 
constituent  of  every  crop  grown  on  the  farm.      Its  proportion  as 


MANURES.  195 

an  element  of  the  ashes  of  plants  is  by  no  means  slight,  as  will  be 
shown  by  the  following  table  giving  the  amount  of  potash  removed 
from  the  soil  by  various  crops  : — * 

I o  bushels  of  wheat 3   lbs. 

1,200  lbs.  of  wheat  straw 9     " 

10  busheli  of  rye 2^  " 

1,600  lbs.  of  rye  straw 1 1     " 

10  bushels  of  corn aj  " 

1  ton  of  corn  stalks 8     " 

10  bushels  of  oats if  " 

1,700  lbs.  of  oat  straw 12     " 

10  bushels  of  beans 5=^  " 

1,100  lbs.  of  bean  straw 36     " 

1  ton  of  turnips y     " 

700  lbs.  of  turnip  tops ', 5     " 

I  ton  of  potatoes 28     " 

I  ton  of  re  1  ciover 31     " 

I  ton  of  meadow  hay 18     " 

1  ton  of  cabbage 5     " 

Assuming  the  production  of  a  farm  to  be  500  bushels  of  wheat, 
100  bushels  of  rye,  10  tons  of  turnips,  40  bushels  of  potatoes,  lO 
tons  of  clover  hay,  and  20  tons  of  meadow  hay,  and  assuming  the 
production  of  the  grain  to  require  the  proportion  of  straw  stated 
above,  the  amount  of  potash  taken  from  the  soil  in  a  single  year 
would  be  about  2,500  lbs.,  being  the  amount  contained  in  over 
1,000  bushels  of  unleached  oak  wood  ashes,  and  worth,  according 
to  Professor  Johnson's  estimate,  about  $roo. 

This  is  not  an  unusually  large  estimate  for  the  production  of  any 
good  farm  ;  and  the  amount  of  potash  removed  is  more  than  the 
amount  returned  in  the  form  of  purchased  manure  in  any  twenty 
years  to  an  average  farm  in  New  England. 

The  sources  from  which  potash  may  be  most  advantageously 
obtained  by  the  farmer  are  wood  ashes — leached  or  unleached — 
green  sand  marl,  sea-weed,  and  swamp  muck. 

The  most  universally  accessible  source,  in  any  new  country 
like  this,  is,  of  course,  wood  ashes.      And  such  as  have  not  been 

*  Small  fractions  are  disregarded,  as  it  is  only  desired  in  this  connection  to  show  gen- 
eral results. 


196  HAXDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

•leached  are  very  much  the  most  valuable,  especiallv  so  far  as  their 
amount  of  potash  is  concerned,  as  the  leaching  has  for  its  object 
only  the  removal  of  this  ingredient.  At  the  same  time,  the  value 
of  hard-wood  ashes  for  the  production  of  potash  is  often  too  high 
to  allow  of  their  use  as  a  manure  ;  and  the  chief  supply  of  farmers 
within  easy  carriage  of  leaching  establishments,  is  in  the  applica- 
tion of  leached  ashes,  which  still  contain  a  considerable  amount 
of  potash  that  the  imperfect  leaching  has  not  withdrawn  from . 
them,  owing  to  a  low  degree  of  solubility,  but  that  is  perfectly 
available  to  the  roots  of  plants.  The  value  of  leached  ashes 
(along  the  New  England  coast  usually  about  28  cents  per  bushel) 
is  fixed  solely  by  an  agricultural  demand,  and  may  be  taken  as  a 
fair  price  for  the  article  as  a  manure  ;  although,  of  course,  its 
entire  value  is  not  represented  by  its  content  of  potash,  as  it  yields, 
also,  an  appreciable  amount  of  phosphoric  acid,  and  possibly  some 
readily  available  silicic  acid. 

In  regions  where  lime  is  burned  with  wood  fuel,  the  ashes  (un- 
leaciied)  are  sold  as  a  manure,  but  the  large  amount  of  lime  that 
becomes  mixed  with  them  considerably  lessens  their  value  as  a 
fertilizer,  while  its  uncertain  proportion  makes  it  difficult  to  deter- 
mine what  their  actual  value  is.  Ordinarily,  within  reach  of  the 
limekilns  of  Maine,  they  are  estimated  to  be  worth  about  the 
same  as  I'^ached  ashes  ;  but  there  is  always  room  for  guessing  in 
making  the  purchase — they  may  be  worth  sometimes  more  and 
sometimes  less. 

The  green  sand  marl  of  New  Jersey,  which  has  been  devel- 
oped witl'.in  the  past  twenty  or  thirty  years,  has  had  the  effect  of 
regenerating  a  very  large  tract  of  the  South  Jersey  country  which 
was  considered  almost  valueless  for  agricultural  purposes,  and  of 
doing  much  toward  raising  the  entire  State  to  the  very  first  rank 
as  an  agricultural  region — for,  probably,  there  is  no  district  in  the 
country  which,  in  proportion  to  the  selling  value  of  the  land,  and 
to  the  population  employed  in  agriculture,  yields,  year  by  year, 
so  large  an  amount  of  money  as  does  that  which  lies  within  easy 
hauling  distance  of  the  marl-pits  stretching  from  the  Atlantic 
Ocean  to  the  Delaware  River  ;  and  there  is  reason  to  believe  that 


MANURES.  197 

the  barren  lands  which  comprise  almost  the  whole  of  New  Jersey 
south  of  a  line  drawn  from  New  York  to  Philadelphia  may  be 
profitably  brought,  by  the  use  of  marl,  to  a  state  of  the  highest 
fertility, — to  a  condition  in  which  they  will  even  rival  the  prairie 
lands  of  the  West.  The  soil  is  light  and  easily  worked,  but  is  of 
so  poor  a  character  that  the  whole  country  is  covered  with  a 
stunted  vegetation,  and  is  known  as  the  "  Barrens."  Much  at- 
tention has  been  drawn  to  this  region  by  the  profuse  advertising 
of  the  Vineland  tract,  and  bv  the  efforts  which  are  being  made  to 
draw  population  to  other  settlements  between  Vineland  and  Sandy 
Hook. 

In  the  autumn  of  1867,  I  visited  the  farm  of  the  New  Jersey 
Agricultural  College  at  New  Brunswick,  and  Professor  Cook,  the 
State  geologist,  and  President  of  the  Agri-cultural  College,  showed 
me  a  tract  of  heavy  clay  land  upon  which  he  had  experimented 
with  the  use  of  marl.  Three  pieces  of  land,  in  all  respects  the 
same,  and  each  measuring  one  quarter  of  a!i  acre,  were  set  apart 
for  the  experiment.  The  first  received  a  dressing  of  100  pounds 
of  the  best  flour  of  bone  ;  the  second  received  nothing  ;  and  the 
third  an  application  of  green  sand  marl,  costing,  delivered  on  the 
ground,  the  same  amount  as  the  100  pounds  of  bone  dust.  There 
were  no  means  for  accurately  weighing  the  crop,  but  by  a  careful 
estimate,  the  result  was  as  follows :  The  tract  manured  with 
bone  dust  produced  at  the  rate  of  54  cocks  of  hay  to  the  acre  ; 
that  which  received  no  manure  produced  at  the  rate  of  36  cocks  ; 
and  that  which  was  manured  with  green  sand  marl  produced  at 
the  rate  of  85  cocks.  The  following  table  of  analysis  will  show 
the  composition  of  green  sand  marl : — * 

Protoxide  of  iron ^55 

Alumina 6'9 

Lime 5'3 

Magnesia i  '6 

Potash 4'8 

Soluble  silica 3^'4 

Insoluble  silica  and  sand I9"8 

*  Elements  of  Agriculture.      G.  E.  Waring,  Jr.      Page  240. 


198  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

Sulphuric  acid O-g 

Phosphoric  acid i  -^ 

Water go 

Carbonic  acid,  etc ^-g 

loo-oo 
This   is   an  average  of  three   analyses  copied   from    Professor 
George   H.    Cook's   report  of  the  geology  of  New  Jersey.      Ac- 
cording   to    this    estimate,   one    ton    (2,000   lbs.)   of  green   sand 
marl  contains — 

Lime 106  lbs. 

Magnesia 32  " 

Potash 56  " 

Soluble  silicic  acid 648  " 

Sulphuric  acid 12  " 

Phosphoric  acid 26  " 

(Equal  to  phosphate  of  lime,  56^  lbs.) 

It  will  be  seen  by  this  analysis  that  the  amount  of  phosphoric 
acid  contained  is  sufficient  to  add  very  much  to  the  effect  of  the 
marl,  but  its  content  of  potash  is  so  great  as  to  account  for  its 
chief  value,  and  all  regions  which  are  within  reach  of  the  marl- 
beds,  even  by  the  aid  of  a  cheap  water  carriage,  may  be  greatly 
benefited  by  the  use  of  the  material,  which  is  found  in  comparatively 
inexhaustible  supply.  It  is  to  be  recommended,  however,  that  its 
first  introduction  be  only  in  an  experimental  way,  as  it  is  not  equally 
efficient  on  all  soils.  As  a  source  of  potash  anywhere  along  the 
Atlantic  coast,  it  will  probably  be  found  an  economical  fertilizer. 
In  the  fall  of  1867,  I  purchased  a  cargo  of  about  140  tons  of  marl, 
which  cost,  delivered  on  the  wharf  at  Newport,  83-60  a  ton;  and 
used  it  in  various  ways  in  my  market-garden  and  at  Ogden  Farm. 

In  the  garden  its  effect  was,  in  every  case,  very  decided,  espe- 
cially on  one  tract  of  three-quarters  of  an  acre  of  Jersey  Wakefield 
cabbage.  The  land  was  manured  very  heavily,  of  course,  with 
stable  manure,  but  no  more  so  than  is  customary  in  garden  culti- 
vation— no  more  heavily  than  my  cabbage  fields  had  previously 
been  manured.  After  the  plants  had  been  set  out,  a  single  handful 
of  a   compost   of  equal    parts  of  green  sand  marl  and  clear   horse 


MANURES.  199 

manure  was  put  on  the  surface  about  the  plants,  and  I  attribute 
chiefly  to  the  influence  of  the  marl  thus  applied  the  fact  that  the 
crop  thus  produced  was  the  finest  that  had  ever  been  seen  in  the 
neighborhood,  and  better  than  any  I  have  ever  seen  anywhere 
else. 

At  Ogden  Farm,  however,  where  most  of  the  marl  was  used, 
I  have  thus  far  in  no  instance  seen  any  decided  benefit  resulting. 
But  this  fact  should  by  no  means  condemn  the  marl,  for  the  rea- 
son that  the  land,  not  then  having  even  been  drained,  was  so 
excessively  wet  during  the  entire  season  that  no  manure  could 
have  fair  play. 

The  only  noticeable  advantage  resulting  from  its  use  was  to  be 
found  in  the  spontaneous  growth  of  a  very  thick  mat  of  white 
clover  in  an  old  meadow.  Whether  the  draining  of  the  farm 
which  is  now  completed  will  have  the  effect  of  demonstrating  the 
value  of  the  marl  remains  to  be  seen.  It  is  my  opinion  that  it 
will,  since  not  even  fish  guano  and  other  active  manures  were 
able  during  this  wet  season  to  produce  a  marked  result  on  any 
part  of  the  farm. 

It  is  hardly  fair  to  confine  our  account  of  sea-weed  to  the  simple 
consideration  of  the  potash  which  it  furnishes,  since  its  most  valu- 
able constituent  is  probably  nitrogen — producing  ammonia,  and  it 
contains  other  earthy  elements  in  perceptible  quantity.  But  its 
chief  value  as  a  permanejit  fertilizer  is  no  doubt  due  to  the  potash 
which  results  from  its  decomposition. 

The  use  of  sea-weed,  however,  is  confined  to  such  limited 
localities,  and  is  so  thoroughly  well  understood  by  all  farmers  re- 
siding near  the  sea-coast,  that  it  is  hardly  worth  while  in  a  practical 
treatise  of  this  sort  to  devote  much  space  to  its  consideration. 
Certainly  nothing  that  we  could  say  could  possibly  increase  the 
enthusiastic  devotion  to  its  "getting"  which  actuates  all  sea-board 
farmers. 

I  once  asked  a  neighbor,  who  is  remarkably  "well-to-do"  in 
the  world,  how  he  could  make  up  his  mind  to  get  up  at  3  o'clock 
on  cold  winter  mornings,  and  go  with  his  team  to  a  beach,  four 
miles  distant,  to  haul  home  sea-weed  ;  and  to  find  his  chief  winter 


200  nANDT-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

amusement,  even  in  the  coldest  weather,  in  working  in  the  surf, 
remarking  that  it  did  not  seem  to  mc  that,  to  a  man  situated  as  he 
was,  the  sea-weed  was  worth  the  trouble.  His  replv  was  as 
follows  :  *'  There's  more  than  sea-weed  in  it — the  devil's  in  it, — 
''and  I  don't  know  how  it  is,  but  I  had  rather  sit  up  all  night  to 
"  get  sea-weed  than  to  go  out  earlv  in  the  morning  duck-shooting." 
Indeed,  in  m.inv  sea-board  neighborhoods  feuds  and  lawsuits, 
generations  old,  are  based  solely  on  contests  and  jealousies  con- 
cerning "  sea-weed  rights  ;"  and  the  fertilitv  of  the  grass  lands  to 
which  sea-weed  is  habituallv  applied  is  sufficientlv  great  to  estab- 
lish its  value. 

Swamp  muck  being,  so  far  as  its  organic  matter  is  concerned, 
entirely  the  result  of  the  decomposition  of  vegetable  matter,  its 
ashes,  of  course,  are  rich  in  various  earthy  ingredients  of  vegeta- 
tion. Professor  S.  W.  Johnson  publishes  a  table,  giving  the 
average  of  the  analyses  of  26  specimens  of  muck  or  peat,  and  in 
the  ashes  of  these  there  is  an  average  amount  of  potash  equal  to 
•j^y'jj- of  one  per  cent.  And  when  we  consider  the  average  amount 
of  ash,  including  the  earthy  deposits  which  are  added  to  peat  in  its 
formation,  and  the  very  large  quantities  that  are  used  on  farms  on 
which  it  is  used  at  all,  we  see  that  the  total  amount  of  potash  to 
be  derived  from  this  source  is  bv  no  means  insignificant,  and  that  it 
constitutes  an  important  element  of  the  value  of  muck  as  a  manure. 

Lime. — This  material,  although  forming  an  important  part  of  the 
ashes  of  plants,  is  to  be  more  properly  considered,  in  its  applica- 
tion as  a  manure,  under  the  head  of  "  mechanical  manures,"  and 
will,  accordingly,  be  treated  hereafter. 

Special  Fertilizers. 

It  would  be  hardly  prudent  in  any  work  of  the  character  of  this 
to  describe  the  various  special  fertilizers,  under  their  different 
names  and  according  to  the  reputation  of  their  manufacturers. 
There  are  many  different  brands  of  phosphate  of  lime,  all  of  which, 
if  made  strictly  according  to  the  recipe  by  which  they  profess  to 
be  compounded,  should  be  valuable  manures.      But  the  farmer  in 


MANURES.  201 

purchasing  them  should  be  guided  by  other  considerations  than 
those  of  ^^«^r^/ value.  The  probity  of  the  manufacturer,  and  the 
care  with  which  his  subordinates  carry  out  his  instructions,  have  so 
much  to  do  with  the  value  of  the  product  of  any  establishment, 
that  purchases  from  each  should  be  made  according;  to  more  infor- 
mation than  it  would  be  safe  or  proper  to  give  in  this  book. 
I  Peruvian  gua?io^  when  purchased  from  the  regular  agents  of  the 
Peruvian  government,  or  from  any  thoroughly  honest  dealer,  may 
be  depended  on  as  an  extremely  valuable  manure  for  certain  pur- 
poses, but  it  must  always  be  used  with  great  judgment  and  discre- 
tion. Its  valuable  constituents  are  so  perfectly  prepared  for  the  uses 
of  vegetation,  that  even  so  small  a  dressing  as  loo  pounds  per  acre, 
evenly  spread  over  the  land,  produces  such  a  marked  effect  on 
early  vegetation  as  to  give  nearly  all  crops  a  start  so  rapid  that 
they  are  enabled  to  take  up  with  great  vigor  from  the  soil  itself 
such  plant-nutriment  as  it  may  be  able  to  offer.  Probably,  even 
in  addition  to  its  influence  as  an  easily  assimilated  food,  it  acts  as 
a  solvent  of  certain  elements  of  the  soil,  and  makes  them  much 
more  readily  available.  The  result  is,  in  many  cases,  that  a  soil, 
which,  in  its  natural  condition,  would  furnish  the  mineral  food 
for  only  a  small  crop,  will,  with  this  slight  assistance,  furnish 
the  mineral  matter  required  for  a  very  much  larger  crop,  the 
mineral  matter  taken  up  being  many  times  greater  than  that 
contained  in  the  guano.  Herein  lies,  probably,  the  only  secret  of 
what  is  called  the  "exhausting"  influence  of  Peruvian  o;uano,  for 
up  to  this  point  (the  raising  of  the  crop)  no  injury  has  been  done. 
The  final  result  of  the  cultivation  must  depend  on  the  judgment 
and  care  of  the  farmer.  If,  elated  by  the  excessive  production  or 
tempted  by  an  exceptionally  high  price  of  the  crop  in  market,  he 
sells  off  from  his  farm  all  that  has  been  produced  by  the  aid  of  the 
guano,  the  land  must  inevitably  suffer  in  consequence  ;  but  if  the 
crop  be  consumed  on  the  farm,  or  in  any  manner  so  made  use  of 
that  its  mineral  ingredients  are  returned  to  the  soil  on  which  it 
grew,  it  will  be  found  that  the  effect  of  the  guano  has  been  per- 
manently beneficial. 

In    improving  waste   laiid  with   the  aid   of  a  stock  of  cattle  to 


202  HAXDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

consume  the  crops  raised,  there  is  no  other  agent  so  valuable  as 
Peruvian  guano  ;  for  the  cultivation  of  hired  land,  or  land  which 
has  been  bought  at  a  low  rate  for  a  specific  purpose,  the  crops 
being  sold  away,  nothing  is  more  injurious. 

This  m,anure  is  as  powerful  and  almost  as  dangerous  as  gun- 
powder. It  mav  be  made  to  produce  the  best  permanent  results, 
and  to  add  more  than  almost  any  thing  else  can  to  the  prosperity 
of  the  farmer.  But  unless  managed  with  care  and  prudence  he 
might  almost  as  well  blow  up  his  whole  concern,  for  certain  im- 
poverishment of  the  land,  and  probably  of  the  farmer  too,  will 
result  from  such  a  system  of  robbery  as  Peruvian  guano  makes 
possible  and  strongly  tempts  us  to. 

Fish  guatio  is  subject  to  all  of  the  recommendations,  and  to  all 
of  the  strictures  which  have  been  applied  in  the  case  of  Peruvian 
guano.  It  is  the  refuse  of  fish-oil  works,  which  have  been  estab- 
lished within  a  few  years,  along  our  eastern  coast,  where  the 
menhaden,  or  moss-bunker,  is  subjected  to  hydraulic  pressure  tor 
■the  extraction  of  its  oil.  The  refuse,  which  is  ground  more  or  less 
fine,  is  sold  for  manure,  and,  containing  all  of  the  bones  and  all  of 
the  nitrogenous  elements  of  the  fish,  has  a  very  highly  stimulating 
effect,  and  is,  undoubtedly,  a  capital  fertilizer  when  used  with 
discretion.  Several  manufacturers  of  superphosphate  of  lime  add 
fish  guano  to  their  products  in  order  to  give  them  a  more  rapid 
action.  It  is  a  question,  however,  whether  they  do  not  get  so 
high  a  price  for  the  guano  added  as  to  make  their  fertilizers  too 
expensive  for  use.  Unfortunately,  also,  there  are  no  means  by 
which  they  may  be  restrained  from  adding  sand,  ashes,  and  other 
worthless  material  to  the  mass,  and  so  swindle  their  purchasers 
to  an  unlimited  extent.  Such  fertilizers  should  be  purchased 
only  by  careful  chemical  analysis,  their  price  being  regulated  ac- 
cording to  the  value  of  their  useful  constituents. 

Solvent  Manures. 

It  is  hardly  possible-y-indeed,  it  is  quite  impossible — to  separate 
into  a  class  by  themselves  those  manures  whose  action  is  due  to 


MA.NURES.  203 

their  power  of  rendering  the  earthy  ingredients  of  the  soil  more 
soluble,  or  in  any  way  more  available  to  the  roots  of  plants  ;  for 
it  happens  in  almost  every  instance  that  the  solvent  effect  is  pro- 
duced by  the  action  of  materials  which  also  come  under  the  head 
of  nutrient  manures. 

If  there   is   any  single   fertilizer  which  is  a  solvent,  and   only  a 
solvent,  it   is  common  salt.      This   contains,   it    is   true,   only  ele- 
ments (chlorine  and  sodium)  which  are  found  in  the  ashes  of  nearly 
all  cultivated  plants,  and  which  are  more  or  less  important  to  their 
growth  ;   but   the    amount    of   either  of  these    that    is   absolutely 
requisite  to  the  perfection  of  the  growth  of  any  crop  is  so   slight, 
and   the   quantity  of  each  that   is  to  be  found    in   every  cultivated 
soil  is   so  great,  that  it  would  be  fair  to  assume  that  crops   can 
always    obtain    from    the    natural    source    all    of   either    chlorine 
or  sodium  that  they  require.      The  marked  action  which  generally 
follows  the  use  of  small  dressings  of  salt — say  from  5  to  8  bushels 
per  acre — and  the  exceptional  action  in  those  cases  where  it  seems 
to   be   almost   as   active   as  Peruvian  guano  itself,  indicate  that   it 
exerts   an    influence    on    vegetation   which    can   by   no   means   be 
ascribed  to  its  supply  of  food  directly  to  the  plant.      The  manner 
in  which   it   is   supposed   to  act   as  a  dissolving  agent  is   very  well 
described  in  the  following  quotation  from  Liebig's  last  work  : — * 
"  When  the  exhaustion  of  a  field  is  not  caused  by  the  absolute 
'  deficiency  of  food   elements,  when  even  a  more  than  adequate 
'  supply  of  all  the  needful  nutriment  is  there,  but  not  in  the  pro- 
'  per   form,  and  where   consequently  fallowing  will   again   render 
'  the  crop  remunerative,  the  farmer  has   means  at   his  disposal  to 
'  assist  the  action  of  the  natural  agencies,  whereby  the  conversion 
'  of  the  food  into   the   state   of  physical  combination  is  effected, 
'  and   thus   to  shorten  the  fallowing  season,  or  even,  in  many  in- 
'  stances,  to  make  it  altogether  superfluous. 

"  We  have  seen  that  the  diffusion  of  earthy  phosphates  through 
••'  the  soil  is  effected  exclusively  by  water,  which,  if  containing  a 
'■'•  certain  amount  of  carbonic  acid,  dissolves  these  earthy  salts. 

*  The  Natural  Laws  of  Husbandry.     J.  Von  Liebig,  Munich,  March,  1863. 


204  nAXDY-BOOK    OF    UCSBAXDRY. 

'*■  Now  there  are  certain  salts,  such  as  chloride  of  sodium,  (com- 
"  mon  salt,)  nitrate  of  soda,  and  salts  of  ammonia,  which  experi- 
"  ence  has  pro\  ed  to  exercise,  under  certain  conditions,  a  favorable 
"action  upon  the  productiveness  of  a  field. 

'■*■  These  salts,  even  in  their  most  dilute  solutions,  possess,  like 
"  carbonic  acid,  the  remarkable  power  ot  dissolving  phosphate  of 
*'  lime  and  phosphate  of  magnesia  ;  and  when  such  solutions  are 
"  filtered  through  arable  soil,  thev  behave  just  like  the  solution  of 
"  these  phosphates  in  carbonic  acid  water.  The  earth  extracts 
"  from  these  salt  solutions  the  dissolved  earthy  phosphates,  and 
"  combines  with  the  latter. 

"  Upon  arable  soil  mixed  with  earthy  phosphates  in  excess, 
*'  these  salt  solutions  act  in  the  same  wav  as  upon  earthv  phos- 
"  phates  in  the  unmixed  state,  that  is,  thev  dissolve  a  certain  pro- 
"  portion  of  the  phosphates. 

'*  Nitrate  of  soda,  and  chloride  of  sodium  suffer,  by  the  action 
*'  of  arable  soil,  a  similar  decomposition  to  that  of  the  salts  of 
"  potash.  Soda  is  absorbed  by  the  soil,  and  in  its  stead  lime  or 
*'  magnesia  enters  into  solution  in  combination  with  the  acid. 

"  If  we  compare  the  action  of  arable  soil  upon  salts  of  potash 
"  and  salts  of  soda,  we  find  that  the  soil  has  far  less  attraction  for 
"  soda  than  for  potash  ;  so  that  the  same  volume  of  earth  which 
••'  will  suffice  to  remove  all  the  potash  from  a  solution  will,  in  a 
"  solution  of  chloride  of  sodium  or  nitrate  of  soda  of  the  same 
*'  alkaline  strength,  leave  undecomposed  three-fourths  of  the  dis- 
"  solved  chloride  of  sodium,  and  half  of  the  nitrate  of  soda. 

"  If,  therefore,  a  field  exhausted  by  culture,  which  contains 
"  earthy  phosphate  scattered  here  and  there,  is  manured  with 
"  nitrate  of  soda  or  chloride  of  sodium,  and  by  the  action  of  rain 
"  a  dilute  solution  of  these  salts  is  formed,  a  portion  of  them  will 
"  remain  undecomposed  in  the  ground,  and  must  in  the  moist 
"  soil  exert  an  influence,  weak  in  itself,  but  sure  to  tell  in  the 
"  long  run. 

"  Like  carbonic  acid  generated  by  the  putrefaction  of  vegetable 
"  and  animal  substances,  and  dissolving  in  water,  these  salt 
"  solutions   become  charged  with   earthy  phosphates  in  all  places 


MANURES.  205 

*■*■  where  these  occur.  Now  when  these  phosphates  diffused 
"  through  the  fluid  come  into  contact  with  particles  of  the  arable 
"  soil  not  already  saturated  with  them,  they  are  thereby  withdrawn 
"  from  the  solution,  and  the  nitrate  of  soda  or  chloride  of  sodium 
"  remaining  in  solution  again  acquires  the  power  ot  repeatedly  ex- 
*'  erting  the  same  dissolving  and  diffusing  action  upon  phosphates 
"  which  are  not  already  fixed  in  the  soil  by  physical  attraction, 
"  until  these  salts  are  finally  carried  down  by  rain-water  to  the 
"  deeper  layers  of  the  soil,  or  are  totally  decomposed." 

:H  ^  ^  ^  ^:  :}:  ^i; 

*'  Of  nitric  acid,  it  is  generally  assumed  that  it  may,  like  am- 
''  monia,  serve  to  sustain  the  body  of  the  plant.  Thus,  chloride 
"  of  sodium  and  the  nitrates  act  in  two  distinct  ways,  one  direct, 
"  by  serving  as  food  for  the  plant  ;  one  indirect,  by  rendering  the 
"  phosphates  available  for  the  purposes  of  nutrition. 

"  The  salts  of  ammonia  act  upon  earthy  phosphates  in  the  sa^^e 
"  way  as  the  salts  just  mentioned,  but  with  this  distinction,  thac 
''  their  power  of  dissolving  phosphate  is  far  greater  ;  a  solution  of 
"  sulphate  of  ammonia  will  dissolve  twice  as  much  bone-earth  as 
"a  solution  of  an  equal  quantity  of  chloride  of  sodium. 

"  However,  as  regards  the  phosphates  in  the  soil,  the  action  of 
"  the  salts  of  ammonia  can  hardly  be  more  powerful  than  that  of 
"  chloride  of  sodium  or  nitrate  of  soda,  since  the  salts  of  ammonia 
"  are  decomposed  by  the  soil  much  more  speedily,  and  often  even 
"immediately;  so  that,  as  a  general  rule,  no  solution  of  such  a 
"  salt  can  be  said  to  be  actually  moving  about  in  the  soil.  But  as 
"  a  certain  volume  of  earth,  however  small,  is  required  to  decom- 
"  pose  a  given  quantity  of  salts  of  ammonia,  the  action  of  those 
"  salts  upon  this  small  volume  of  earth  must  be  all  the  more 
"  powerful.  While,  then,  the  action  of  salts  of  ammonia  is  barely 
"  perceptible  in  the  somewhat  deeper  layers  of  the  arable  surface 
"  soil,  that  which  they  exercise  on  the  uppermost  layers  is  so 
"  much  the  stronger.  Ftichtinger  observed  that  solutions  of  salts 
"  of  ammonia  decompose  many  silicates,  even  feldspar,  and  take  up 
"  potash  from  the  latter.  Thus,  by  their  contact  with  the  arable 
"  soil,  they  not  only  enrich  it  with  ammonia,  but  they  effect,  even 


206  ^^  A  N  D  Y  -  B  0  OK     OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"  in  its  minutest  particles,  a  thorough  transposition  of  the  nutritive 
"  substances  required  by  plants." 

The  above  quotation  describes  the  action  of  all  those  elements 
of  manure  which  come  under  the  head  of  solvents,  and  precludes 
the  necessity  of  a  further  discussion  of  the  subject  by  my  less 
skillful  pen. 

Absorbent  Manures. 

There  are  no  manures  applied  to  the  soil  which  probably  depend 
entirely  for  their  beneficial  action  upon  their  ability  to  absoib 
fertilizing  gases  from  the  atmosphere,  or  fertilizing  solutions  from 
other  sources  ;  and  it  need  only  be  stated,  in  general  terms,  that 
clay  and  decomposed  organic  matter,  and,  less  conspicuously, 
charcoal  dust  and  plaster,  in  addition  to  their  other  modes  of  action, 
have,  to  a  considerable  extent  this  accessory  power ;  and,  whether  in 
compost  with  animal  manures  or  as  direct  applications  to  the  sur- 
face of  the  soil,  they  are  worthy  of  the  farmer's  careful  attention 
and  preservation.  In  this  respect  it  will  be  enough  to  follow  the 
recognized  rule,  that,  in  agriculture,  every  thing  which  can  in  anv 
way  add  to  the  fertility  of  the  land  should  be  secured,  from  what- 
ever source,  and  nothing  whatever  should  be  allowed  to  go  to 
waste. 

Mechanical  Manures. 

Interlacing,  also,  in  almost  every  part,  with  the  feeding  and 
solvent  action  of  special  fertilizers,  and  of  the  results  of  the  de- 
composition of  organic  manures,  we  find  another  efi^ect  which  can 
hardly  in  any  single  instance  be  set  down  as  the  sole  source  of  the 
benefit  of  any  manurial  application,  and  which  is  known  as  me- 
chanical.  Probably  the  effect  of  the  application  of  sea-sand,  espe- 
cially such  as  by  exposure  to  rain  has  been  washed  clean  of  its  small 
amount  of  salt,  is  to  be  ascribed  pretty  nearly,  if  not  altogether, 
to  its  purely  mechanical  effect  in  loosening  the  rigidity  of  clays, 
and  in  rendering  heavy  soils  lighter,  and  it  may,  perhaps,  be  set 
down  as  a  simply  mechanical  manure. 


MANURES.  207 

But  there  is  scarcely  any  thing  which  we  apply  to  the  land  that 
does  not  owe  very  much  of  its  fertilizing  influence  to  its  mechani- 
cal action.  For  instance,  stable  manure,  when  plowed  into  the 
soil,  by  its  decomposition  elevates  its  temperature,  by  its  fibrous 
texture  separates  its  particles,  and  by  the  power  of  its  organic 
matter  to  absorb  moisture  prevents  very  light  soils  from  becoming 
too  dry,  while,  from  its  loosening  action,  it  hastens  the  drying  of 
heavy  wet  lands.  Nearly  all  manures,  also,  of  which  the  con- 
stituents have  a  chemical  action  on  the  particles  of  the  soil  have 
the  effect  of  breaking  down  the  coarser  clods  or  larger  particles,  and 
lessening  or  increasing  their  adhesion,  and  of  roughening  their 
particles,  giving  them  greater  ability  to  absorb  moisture  and 
greater  ability  to  transmit  excessive  moisture  to  or  through  the 
sub-soil  below. 

It  would  require  more  space  and  consideration  than  is  consist- 
ent with  the  plan  of  this  book  to  enter  very  largely  into  the  dis- 
cussion of  this  branch  of  the  subject.  But  any  farmer  who  will 
give  himself  the  trouble  to  consider  the  different  points  enumer- 
ated above,  and  to  watch  the  effect  on  the  mechanical  condition 
of  the  soil  of  almost  every  manure  that  he  applies,  will  see  that 
this  mechanical  action  constitutes  no  mean  part  of  the  influence 
that  manures  exert  on  vegetation. 

Lime^  however,  an  element  which  exists  in  almost  all  soils  in 
considerable  quantity,  almost  invariably  in  sufficient  quantity  to 
supplv  the  lime  required  for  the  simple  formation  of  the  ashv  part 
of  plants,  is  found  to  be  in  many  districts  the  most  powerful  agent 
for  the  amelioration  of  the  condition  of  the  soil,  and  for  the  per- 
manent increase  of  its  fertility.  It  is  a  singular  fact  that  precisely 
such  soils  as  are  formed  by  the  decomposition  of  limestone  rocks, 
and  which,  as  a  necessary  consequence,  contain  a  very  large  per- 
centage of  lime,  are  the  very  ones  which  are  most  benefited  by 
the  application  of  caustic  or  slacked  lime.  In  these  cases  it  is 
undoubtedly  true  that  the  action  of  the  lime  as  a  solvent  and  as  a 
mechanical  manure  must  account  for  its  beneficial  effect. 

From  an  article  entitled,  "  Lime  on  Hill  Pastures,"  contributed 
by  Prof.  Johnson  to  the  first  number  of  Hearth  and  Home^  I  quote 

14 


208  HANDY -BO  ox     OF     11  L' SB  A  N  D  R  Y  . 

the  following,  which  sets  forth  more  clearly  than  any  thing  that  I 
have  hitherto  met,  one  of  the  chief  reasons  why  lime  often  pro- 
duces an  action  that  justifies  the  high  estimation  in  which  practi- 
cal farmers  hold  its  application  on  heavy  clays  or  wet  hill  lands  : — 
*'  I  well  remember  the  former  condition  of  your  hill-side 
*'  at  Edgcwood,  which,  as  you  mention,  has  been  restored  from 
*'  great  poverty,  and  mainly  by  lime  alone.  The  present  beauty 
*'  of  that  slope  is  but  another  evidence  of  the  truth  of  an  asser- 
*'  tion  that  has  passed  into  a  maxim  in  agriculture,  namely  :  '  Lime 
"  has  reclaimed  more  waste  land  than  all  other  applications  put 
*■*■  together.' 

^  "  The  pasture,  which  once,  no  doubt,  was  comparatively  pro- 
'•*■  ductive,  probably  came  to  be  mossy  and  worthless  by  a  slow 
*'  change  in  its  chemical  constitution,  analogous  to  what  occurs 
*'  in  the  formation  of  hardpan  in  ochrous  soils,  in  the  setting  of 
*'  hydraulic  cement,  and,  generally,  in  the  process  of  rock  making 
"  that  has  gone  on  in  all  ages,  and  still  proceeds,  whereby  sand 
''and  gravels  are  changed  to  freestone,  and  conglomerate  clays  are 
''  indurated  into  slates,  and  shell-mud  is  cemented  into  limestone." 

:(:  ^  ^  :if  ;>:  *  :(: 

"  If  I  rightly  remember,  the  slope  has  some  springs  upon  it, 
'■'■  and  a  drain  or  two  has  been  made  to  assist  them  to  a  speedy 
*'  outflow.  This  oozing  of  water  which,  perhaps,  made  the 
"ground  mossy  when  covered  by  the  original  forest,  was  not 
"  enough,  I  suppose,  to  prevent  good  pasturage  coming  in  so  soon 
*'  as  the  wood  was  cleared  off,  for  the  decay  of  the  leaf-mould 
*'  would  have  left  tlie  surface-soil  porous  and  readily  able  to  free 
*'  itself  from  excess  of  water.  The  springs,  however,  have  al- 
"  ways  tended  to  stagnation,  and  when  the  soil,  through  oxida- 
"  tion  of  its  mould  and  much  cattle  treading,  became  more  com- 
"  pact,  the  free  flow  of  water  was  checked,  and  the  stopping  of 
"  the  springs  reacted  powerfully  upon  the  soil  to  increase  the 
"evil. 

"  If  I  should  venture  a  surmise  as  to  the  nature  of  the  indura- 
"  tion,  it  would  be  that  oxide  of  iron  and  the  acids  resulting  from 
*'  a  peaty  decomposition  o(  vegetable  matter — humates,  ulmates. 


MANURES.  .  209 

"  geates,  or  whatever  chemists  choose  to  name  them — -have  done 
"  the  mischief.  The  soils  of  this  neighborhood  are,  for  the  most 
*'  part,  decidedly,  often  highly  ferruginous,  and  the  very  sandstone 
"  that  crops  out  here  and  there  in  the  vicinity  of  Nevi'  Haven 
"  is,  to  all  appearance,  a  sandy  gravel,  cemented  by  oxide  of  iron. 
"  The  hillside  at  Edgcvvood,  before  your  renovation  began,  was 
"  in  the  early  stages  of  becoming  a  moor^  such  as,  in  humid  cli- 
"  mates,  occupy  immense  stretches  of  country,  producing  noth- 
"  ins  but  moss  and  heather.  Were  EJ^evvood  situated  in  the 
"  north  of  Ireland,  or  Scotland,  or  in  Labrador,  the  hill-side,  left 
"to  itself,  would  in  all  probability  soon  be  covered  wiih  plat 
"  moss,  and  the  heather-bell  would  make  it  as  poetical  as  it 
"  would  be  useless.  The  heat  and  dryness  of  our  summer  have 
"  prevented  this  combination  of  beauty  and  worthlcssness,  and 
"  made  it  simply  an  ordinary  old  mossy  pasture,  until,  for  a  mar- 
"  vel,  it  became  a  feature  of  Edgewood. 

"  These  little-known  humates  of  iron  are  poison  to  all  the 
"  nutritious  grasses.  As  they  accumulated,  the  proper  pasturage 
"  died  out,  the  soil  became  more  and  more  moist  or  springy,  be- 
*'  cause  of  its  induration  on  the  one  hand,  and  still  more  so,  on 
"  the  other,  by  reason  of  the  water-lo\  ing  vegetation  increasing 
"  upon  it. 

"  In  our  climate  sufficient  drainage  alone  would  surely  cure 
"  this  evil  ;  but  to  drain  a  hill-side  so  abrupt  as  that  of  Edgewood 
"  would  seem  absurd.  Yet  it  is  not  absurd  to  squeeze  a  sponge, 
"  and  the  soil  was  a  sponge  that  would  not  let  the  water  flow  out 
"  of  it  even  on  a  slope  of  twenty-five  degrees,  more  or  less.  By 
"  drainage  the  land  would  be  reclaimed,  the  incipient  rock  would 
"  be  broken  up,  the  sponge  would  pass  by  insensible  degrees  into 
"  proper  soil,  the  waters  would  escape,  and  then  the  mosses,  that 
"  live  in  wet  but  perish  in  tilth,  would  give  place  to  better  herbage, 
"  and  the  harsh,  sharp-edged  sedge  v/ould  be  supplanted  by  the 
"  true  grasses. 

"  In  drainage,  it  is  the  air^  and  especially  its  oxygen^  zvbich  cuts  to 
*■'•  pieces  the  cement  that  threatens  the  life  of  the  soil.  The  air  car- 
"  ries  away  in  its  invisible  embrace  the  moisture — takes  position 


210  HAXDY-liOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

*'  among  the  particles  of  earth,  consumes  away  the  humus,  com- 
*'  bines  with  the  black  and  styptic  iron  protoxide,  burning  it  to  red 
'*  and  innocuous  peroxide,  literally  as  well  as  figuratively  warms 
*'  the  soil,  and  sets  up  those  inorganic  activities  that  must  always 
*'  precede  and  prepare  for  the  sway  of  organic  life. 

"  Lime  has  long  been  known  as  a  substitute  for  drainage. 
*'  Even  level-lying  clays  have  been  made  friable  and  dry  by  heavy 
*' liming.  In  the  Ober-Lausitz,  (Germany,)  in  the  north  of  Eng- 
"  land  and  Scotland,  this  effect  has  been  abundantly  seen.  Lord 
*'  Kamcs  noticed,  seventy  years  ago,  that  some  soils  are  rendered 
*'  so  loose  by  overdoses  of  lime  as  to  retain  no  water.  This  is 
'*  especially  the  case  with  their  moorish  soils  and  reclaimed  peat. 
*'  Such  land  becomes  puffy  and  hollow  to  the  tread  when  limed  too 
"  copiously.  If  soil  or  pulverized  rocks,  like  porphyry  and 
"  basalt,  are  mixed  with  one  per  cent,  of  quicklime,  or  two  per 
"  cent,  of  carbonate  of  lime,  (air-slacked  lime,)  then  moistened 
"  with  water  and  set  aside  for  some  months  in  a  closed  bottle,  it 
''  will  be  seen  by  the  eye  that  a  very  perceptible  change  of  bulk 
*'  has  taken  place  in  the  mixture.  The  rock  or  soil  becomes 
*'  more  voluminous  and  more  porous  by  this  treatment. 

"The  effect  of  lime  in  loosening  the  soil  is  partly  the  result 
"  of  chemical  action,  whereby  particle  after  particle  is  detached 
"  from  each  grain  of  firm  stone,  the  volume  of  the  whole  in- 
"  creasing,  just  as  the  bulk  of  an  ounce  of  iron  is  made  more  by 
"  cutting  it  to  filings,  or  that  of  a  rag  of  linen  by  tearing  it  to 
"  lint. 

"  The  effect  is  also  in  part  mechanical,  especially  in  clay, 
*'  whose  plastic  particles  adhere  together  when  the  mass  is  swol- 
*^  Icn  with  wet,  and,  on  slow  drying,  still  cohere  and  harden  to 
*'  clods.  When  clay  is  limed,  the  lime,  being  dissolved  in  rain, 
**  is  carried  wherever  the  rain  penetrates,  and  coats  the  fine 
*'  grains  of  clay  as  the  atoms  of  a  dye  fix  themselves  upon  the 
"  fiber  of  cloth,  so  that,  when  the  water  wastes,  it  is  not  any 
"  longer  adhesive  clay  settling  to  a  doughy  paste,  but  clay  rolled 
"  in  lime,  that  no  more  sticks  tocrether  than  bread-doug-h  sticks  to 
"  the  pan  or  fingers  dusted  with  flour.      Clays  that  naturally  con- 


MANURES.  211 

"  tain  a  few  per  cent,  of  lime-carbonate  (clay-marls)  are  friable 
"  and  unplastic,  and  a  copious  dressing  of  lime  upon  a  clay  field 
"  converts  it,  after  a  year  or  two,  into  a  marl  with  a  highly  irn- 
"  proved  texture." 

I  have  found  in  my  own  practice,  in  the  cultivation  of  heavy 
moist  land  in  garden  vegetables,  that  an  application  of  a  single 
barrel  of  air-slacked  lime  per  acre,  spread  with  perfect  uniformity 
by  a  broadcast  sower,  resulted  in  a  growth  of  cabbages  and  root 
crops  which  I  think  it  would  have  been  impossible  for  me  to 
have  attained  on  such  soil  without  it. 

As  an  incidental  advantage  of  the  use  of  lime,  I  am  led  by  my 
own  experience  to  indorse  most  fully  the  opinion  of  Peter  Flen- 
derson  concerning  its  effect  on  certain  insects  which  are  especially 
injurious  to  vegetation.  He  claims  that  the  reason  why  those  few 
favored  market-gardeners  who  cultivate  a  little  tract  on  the  shores 
of  Communipaw  Bay  are  able  to  grow  cabbages  year  after  year, 
on  the  same  land,  is,  that  this  region  was  used  for  ages,  in  the  olden 
time,  as  a  clam-baking  ground  by  the  Indians  of  New  Jersey,  and 
that  the  immense  number  of  clam-shells  that  are  found  to  the 
depth  of  a  foot  or  more  in  all  of  the  land  of  that  region,  exert  an 
influence  on  the  soil  which  renders  it  unfavorable  to  the  "  club- 
foot" insect.  That  this  effect  exists  there  is  no  doubt,  although 
it  is  not  in  accordance  with  our  generally-received  ideas  to  sup- 
pose that  bits  of  insoluble  shells  should  produce  a  result  at  all 
similar   to  that  of  caustic   or  even   more  crumblino-  carbonate  of 

o 

lime. 

The  practice  of  ages  has  shown  that,  both  by  increasing  the 
power  of  the  soil  to  admit  of  the  filtration  of  water  and  by  render- 
ing more  available  its  hidden  stores  of  plant  food,  an  application 
of  lime  to  heavy  land  is  productive  of  the  very  best  immediate 
results  ;  and  in  this  case,  as  in  that  of  Peruvian  guano,  the  applica- 
tion must  be  made  with  care  and  judgment.  It  is  an  old  saying 
among  farmers  of  certain  districts  in  this  country  that  "  lime  kills 
the  land  ;"  and  there  is  a  very  old  couplet  current  in  England, 
which  runs  as  follows  ; — 


212  TIANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"  He  who  limes  without  manure 

Will  leave  liis  farm  anJ  family  poor." 

The  fact  in  this  case  is,  as  in  that  of  Peruvian  guano,  that  the 
apphcation  of  the  single  agent  stimulates  a  production  which  takes 
from  the  soil  other  elements  of  the  ashes  of  plants  than  those 
which  the  application  itself  furnishes. 

Therefore,  while  lime  is  one  of  the  most  valuable  agents  that 
the  farmer  can  employ,  it  is  only  by  a  careful  husbanding  of  the 
soil  elements  these  increased  crops  extract  that  he  will  be  able  to 
maintain  the  increased,  or  even  the  original  fertility  of  the  land. 

GREEN    CROPS. 

After  a  poor  soil  has  been  brought  to  a  condition  in  which  it  is 
possible  to  produce  upon  it  any  considerable  amount  of  vegetation, 
the  road  to  its  entire  reclamation  is  simple  and  easy. 

Probably  the  most  important  agent  in  the  production  of  all  fertile 
soils  has  been  the  growth  and  decomposition  of  vegetation.  In 
some  cases,  forests,  and  in  other  cases,  wild  grasses  have  for  ages 
occupied  the  land,  and  by  the  yearly  decomposition  of  their  dying 
parts — their  stems  and  their  leaves — have  added,  little  by  little,  to 
the  bulk  and  richness  of  the  earth.  By  this  means  not  only  docs 
the  soil  receive  organic  matter  which  had  been  drawn  chieflv  from 
the  atmosphere,  but  every  leaf  and  every  stem  rejected  by  the 
plant  and  added  to  the  soil  contains  potash,  lime,  phosphoric  acid, 
and  other  elements  of  vegetable  ashes,  which  had  been  slowly 
withdrawn  from  the  crude  soil  by  the  roots  of  the  earlier  vegeta- 
tion— perhaps,  in  many  instances,  from  considerable  depths  below 
the  surface.  And  thus,  little  by  little,  perhaps  during  ten  years, 
and  perhaps  during  a  thousand  years,  a  constantly  continuing  pro- 
cess has  brought  the  soil  from  a  condition  in  which  it  would 
support  only  the  lower  orders  of  plants,  or  the  more  vigorous  feed- 
ing trees,  to  that  in  which  it  is  susceptible  of  supporting  plants 
useful  to  man. 

The  practice  of  manuring  by  the  aid  of  green  crops  is  an  appli- 
cation of  the   same  principle  to  the  requirements  of  agriculture  ; 


MANURES.  213 

and  the  success  with  which  this  process  is  availed  of  for  our 
purposes  depends  almost  entirely  upon  a  proper  selection  of  the 
plant  which  is  to  be  used.  In  America  it  has  come  to  be  an 
established  fact  that,  wherever  clover  will  grow,  it  is,  all  things 
considered,  the  best  plant  for  our  use  ;  but  the  same  rules  which 
regulate  its  adoption  and  the  extent  to  which  wc  may  avail  our- 
selves of  its  action,  go\ern  the  cultivation  of  all  other  plants  for 
this  purpose.  Clover  is  a  plant  which  is  capable  of  germinating 
and  commencing  its  growth  under  circumstances  of  sterility  which 
would  be  unfavorable  to  almost  all  other  farm  crops.  Often, 
where  nothing  of  value  would  grow,  the  application  of  a  few 
bushels  of  ground  plaster  to  the  acre  will  be  sufficient  to  stimulate 
this  plant  to  an  active  vegetation.  Its  roots  are  exceedingly 
strong,  descend  to  a  great  depth  into  the  soil,  and  have  an 
extraordinary  power  of  absorbing  matters  which,  to  the  roots  of 
other  plants,  would  be  entirely  unavailable.  Its  foliage  is  abund- 
ant and  fleshy,  and,  under  favorable  circumstances,  it  absorbs  ample 
supplies  from  the  atmosphere.  It  is  asserted,  though,  perhaps,  not 
quite  proven,  that  clover  takes  up  the  free  nitrogen  of  the  air. 
Whether  this  is  true  or  not,  there  seems  little  doubt  that  it  either 
avails  itself  of  the  small  quantities  of  ammonia  that  come  in  con- 
tact with  its  leaves,  or  that  it  has  the  peculiar  power  of  extracting 
ammonia  from  the  soil  which  would  not  be  yielded  to  most  other 
crops.  Certain  it  is  that  both  its  upper  part  and  its  roots  contain 
much  more  nitrogen  than  would  any  other  plant  with  which  we 
are  acquainted,  grown  under  similar  circumstances.  The  mineral 
food  which  it  gets  from  the  soil  and  subsoil — notably  from  the 
latter — and  the  supplies  from  the  atmosphere,  are  stored  up,  not 
only  in  the  stems  and  leaves,  but,  to  a  very  large  extent,  in  the 
roots  also.  And  when  the  crop  is  turned  under  by  the  plow,  or 
even  when  the  principal  growth  having  been  removed  for  hay,  the 
roots  are  killed  by  the  plow,  and  mixed,  as  so  much  dead  organic 
matter,  with  the  soil,  their  decomposition  adds  to  it,  in  a  readily 
available  form,  all  of  those  contents  of  root  and  stem  by  which 
the  growth  of  future  crops  is  to  be  benefited.  And,  in  addition  to 
all  this,  the  lower  ends  of  the  roots,  below  where  they  are  cut  off 


214  IIANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

by  the  plow,  being  deprived  of  their  atmospheric  support,  die, 
decompose  in  their  places,  and  form  inviting  channels  for  the 
penetration  of  the  more  delicate  roots  of  wheat  and  grasses.  Even 
as  Peruvian  guano  stimulates  a  production  which  may  be  made  use 
of  as  a  means  for  permanently  and  largely  increasing  the  fertility  of 
the  soil,  so  clover,  a  little  more  slowly  but  much  more  cheaply, 
accomplishes  the  same  result.  And  even  as  Peruvian  guano, 
when  used  as  a  means  for  obtaining  the  largest  immediate  crops 
for  sale,  is  a  most  exhausting  agent,  so  clover  may  become,  in  the 
hands  of  an  injudicious  cultivator,  the  surest  means  for  speedy 
exhaustion.  And  the  same  rule  applies  here  as  in  all  other  similar 
cases — that  where  the  results  of  any  fertilizing  agent  are  properly 
husbanded,  the  fertility  of  the  land  and  the  wealth  of  the  farmer 
increase,  and  that  where  the  immediate  results  of  the  fertilizer  are 
turned  into  money,  both  the  soil  and  the  farmer  must  ultimately 
be  impoverished. 

This  subject  will  be  more  fully  treated  in  the  chapter  on  Forage 
Crops 

GENERAL    CONCLUSIONS. 

To  sum  up,  in  a  few  words,  all  that  it  has  been  attempted 
to  teach  in  this  chapter,  it  may  be  stated  that  manures  of  all  kinds 
should  be  employed  in  the  light  of  a  comprehensive  understanding 
of  their  various  effects  ;  and  the  general  principle  should  be  con- 
stantly adhered  to,  that,  in  the  policy  of  the  farm,  nothing  should 
be  allowed  to  go  to  waste,  and  nothing  should  be  sold  without 
the  return  of  an  equivalent,  or  pretty  nearly  an  equivalent  of  its 
mineral  \alue. 

If,  by  the  use  of  lime,  Peruvian  guano,  common  salt,  or  any 
other  manure  whose  effect  exceeds  its  ability  to  supply  food  to  the 
plant,  the  crop  is  largely  increased,  that  part  of  the  earthy  con- 
stituents of  the  crop  which  has  been  supplied  bv  the  soil  and  not 
by  the  manure,  must  be  regarded  as  so  much  of  the  original  bank- 
ing capital  of  the  land,  which  is  only  to  be  put  in  circulation — not 
to  be  permanently  disposed  of.  If  we  sell  wheat,  the  important 
mineral  constituents  of  the  wheat  should  be  purchased  and  returned 


MANURES.  215 

to  the  soil.  If  we  sell  milk,  or  wool,  or  flesh,  the  phosphate  of 
lime  and  potash  contained  in  those  products  should  be  returned 
from  some  foreign  source  ;  and  it  should  be  our  constant  aim  to 
keep  the  ability  of  the  soil  to  furnish  plant-food  continually 
increasino;  rather  than  diminishinp;. 

The  greatest  care  of  the  farmer  should  be  given  to  the  husband- 
ing of  these  mineral  elements,  and  while  it  is,  perhaps,  on  these 
alone  that  the  permanent  fertility  of  his  soil  depends,  he  will  find 
that  his  true  interest  requires  him  to  increase,  as  much  as  possible, 
by  home  manufacture,  by  purchase,  and  by  absorption  from  the 
atmosphere,  the  amount  of  ammonia  or  nitrates  on  which  the  extra 
productiveness  of  his  land  must  depend.  For,  although  the 
old  "mineral  theory"  of  Liebig  is  undoubtedly  true,  it  Is  also  true 
that  the  amount  of  ammonia  that  the  soil  receives  from  the  at- 
mosphere under  natural  circumstances  may  be  with  advantage 
increased,  both  by  application  in  manure  and  by  offering  facilities 
for  a  still  larger  absorption  from  the  air. 

The  careful  observance  of  these  rules,  coupled,  of  course,  with 
due  attention  to  the  mechanical  condition  of  the  soil,  especially  to 
its  draining,  and  incidentally  to  all  of  those  other  parts  of  the 
farmer's  business  which  help  to  increase  the  results  of  his  labor, 
must  inevitably  make  the  cultivation  of  any  land — no  matter  how 
poor  it  may  be  originally — more  and  more  profitable  as  years  pass 
on.  And  it  may  be  stated  as  a  fixed  rule,  that  no  system  of  farm- 
ing under  which  land  does  not,  year  by  year,  grow  better,  can  be 
called  good  farming  ;  for,  however  much  money  soil-robbery  may 
put  into  the  farmer's  pocket,  it  is  more  than  balanced  by  the 
deterioration  of  his  original  capital  and  of  the  fertility  on  which 
alone  his  true  prosperity  is  based. 


chaptp:r    IX 


ROTATION  OF  CROPS, 


Much  has  been  written  during  the  past  two  thousand  years 
concerning  the  rotation  of  crops  ;  yet  we  are,  probably,  at  this 
day  less  certain  concerning  the  various  principles  upon  which 
the  importance  of  rotation  depends  than  concerning  those 
which  govern  almost  every  other  branch  of  agriculture.  It  is 
one  of  those  cases  in  which,  while  science  and  practice  un- 
doubtedly walk  hand  in  hand,  the  relation  which  each  bears  to 
the  other  has  never  been  very  definitely  defined.  In  different 
countries,  and  in  different  parts  of  our  own  country,  different 
rotations  have  been  adopted ;  and,  in  the  absence  of  any  good 
reason  for  objecting  to  the  local  custom,  it  will  be  usually  the 
safest  guide  for  the  farmer  to  follow  it. 

In  this  country,  perhaps  the  most  generally  prevailing  rotation 
is  the  following  :  First,  Indian  corn  ;  second,  oats  ;  third,  wheat  ; 
fourth,  grasses  for  mowing  ;    fifth,  pasture. 

This  rotation  is  subject  to  the  objection  that  it  leaves  no  place 
for  the  root  crops,  and  probably,  as  a  general  rule,  the  scarcity  of 
labor  in  most  parts  of  the  country,  and  the  consequent  difficulty 
of  taking  proper  care  of  root  crops,  justifies  their  omission;  but  it 
is  very  certain  that  we  can  never  achieve  complete  success  until, 
by  an  increase  of  population  or  by  an  increased  ability  to  cultivate 
these  crops  by  horse-power,  we  are  able  to  bring  them  up  to  their 
pre. per  position  as  a  part  of  the  rotation — that  is,  to  cultivate  as 
large  an  area  of  roots  as  we  do  of  corn,  of  oats,  or  of  wheat. 

The  rotation  that  I  have  adopted  in  mv  own  case,  where 
exceptional  circumstances  allow  me  to   perform  more  labor  on  a 


ROTATION    OF    CROPS.  217 

given  area  than  is  usual  in  American  agriculture,  is  the  following  ; 
First  year,  Indian  corn  ;  second  year,  roots  ;  third  year,  soiling 
crops  ;  fourth  year,  soiling  crops  during  the  first  half  of  the  sea- 
son, seeding  down  to  wheat  or  rye  in  the  autumn  ;  fifth  year, 
wheat  or  rye  with  clover  and  timothy  ;  sixth  year,  mowing  ;  the 
single  year's  mowing  to  be  followed  by  corn  again. 

It  is  proper  for  me  to  say  that,  while  this  rotation  has  been 
adopted  after  a  careful  consideration  of  the  practices  of  different 
regions,  and  of  my  own  circumstances,  it  has  not  yet  been  so 
fully  tried  in  practice  as  to  warrant  its  unqualified  recommenda- 
tion for  general  use,  even  where,  as  at  Ogden  farm,  soiling  is  to 
be  adopted  to  the  entire  exclusion  of  pasturing ;  and  it  is  not 
unlikely  that,  after  the  fertility  of  the  soil  has  been  sufficiently 
increased,  the  cultivation  of  corn  and  even  of  wheat  or  rye  may 
be  given  up,  and  their  places  supplied  bv  crops  which,  while  they 
will  require  somewhat  more  labor,  will  produce  a  larger  money 
result. 

In  the  London  Gardeners^  Chronicle  and  Agricultural  Gazette^ 
there  is  an  editorial  article  on  the  subject  of  the  rotation  of  crops, 
in  which  there  appears  the  following  very  sensible  remark  : 
"Practically,  a  good  rotation  should  distribute  the  farm  work 
"  equally,  and  it  should  give  an  opportunity  for  cleaning  the  land." 
And  it  is  generally  advised  that  the  details  of  the  rotation  be  regu- 
lated very  much  more  by  the  prices  of  products,  and  by  the  farmer's 
demand  for  food  for  his  cattle,  than  by  any  arbitrary  rule,  the  two 
objects  being  constantly  kept  in  view,  of  furnishing,  so  far  as  pos- 
sible, regular  employment  for  men  and  teams  throughout  the  busy 
seasons,  and  of  pursuing  such  a  course  as  shall  supply  the  land 
with    the  requisite  manure  at  the  proper  time. 

As  a  matter  of  general  advice.  It  is  to  be  recommended  that  the 
bulk  of  the  farm  manures  be  applied  to  such  crops  (like  Indian 
corn)  as  cannot  be  injured  by  even  the  most  stimulating  applica- 
tion ;  that  crops  which  require  a  settled  fertility  of  the  land,  but 
which  are  Injured  by  the  Immediate  application  of  animal  manures, 
(and  this  Is  true  of  most  grain  crops,)  should  follow  those  to  which 
the  stable  manures  were  originally  applied  ;  that  crops  which  have 


218  HANDY-BOOK     OF    HUSBANDRY. 

but  feeble  power  of  sending  their  roots  deep  into  the  soil  in  search 
of  food  (as  wheat,  for  instance)  should  succeed  such  crops  ^^like 
clover  and  buckwheat)  as  have  this  power  in  an  extraordinary 
degree  ;  that  crops  which  require  clean  culture,  and  the  expense 
of  whose  cultivation  is  very  much  increased  by  the  foulness  of  the 
land,  should  follow  crops  which  leave  the  land  free  from  weeds, 
(as  roots  after  grain  ;)  and  that  crops  which  require  a  large  amount 
of  decomposing  organic  matter  in  the  soil  should  follow  the  decom- 
position of  the  roots  and  stubble  of  grass. 

So  far  as  science  is  able  to  indicate  a  guide  in  this  matter,  the 
case  is  very  well  laid  down  in  the  following  quotations  from  Lie- 
big:-* 

"  If  a  given  space  of  a  soil  (in  surface  and  in  depth)  contains 
"only  a  sufficient  quantity  of  inorganic  ingredients  for  the  perfect 
"  development  of  ten  plants,  twentv  specimens  of  the  same  plant, 
"  cultivated  on  this  surface,  could  onlv  attain  half  their  proper 
*' maturity  ;  in  such  a  case  there  must  be  a  difference  in  the  num- 
*'ber  of  their  leaves,  in  the  strength  of  their  stems,  and  in  the 
*'  number  of  their  seeds. 

"  Two  plants  of  the  same  kind  growing  in  close  vicinitv  must 
"  prove  prejudicial  to  each  other,  if  thev  find  in  the  soil,  or  in  the 
"  atmosphere  surrounding  them,  less  of  the  means  of  nourishment 
"  than  they  require  for  their  perfect  development.  There  is  no 
"  plant  more  injurious  to  wheat  than  wheat  itself,  none  more 
"  hurtful  to  the  potato  than  another  potato.  Hence  we  actually 
"  find  that  the  cultivated  plants  on  the  borders  of  a  field  are  much 
*'  more  luxuriant,  not  only  in  strength,  but  in  the  number  and 
"  richness  of  their  seeds  or  tubers,  than  plants  growing  in  the 
"  middle  of  the  same  field. 

"  The  same  results  must  ensue  in  exactly  a  similar  manner 
"  when  we  cultivate  on  a  soil  the  same  plants  for  successive  years, 
"  instead  of,  as  in  the  former  case,  growing  them  too  closely  to- 
"gether.  Let  us  assume  that  a  certain  soil  contains  a  quantity  of 
*' silicates  and  of  phosphates  sufficient    for    i,ooo  crops  of  wheat, 

*  Agricultural  Chemistry.    J.  von  Lieblg.     Giesscn,  1843. 


ROTATION    OF    CROPS.  219 

"then,  after  l,000  years,  it  must  become  sterile  for  this  plant. 
"  If  we  were  to  remove  the  surface-soil  and  bring  up  the  subsoil 
"  to  the  surface,  making  what  was  formerly  surface-soil  now  the 
"  subsoil,  we  would  procure  a  surface  much  less  exhausted  than 
"  the  former,  and  this  might  suffice  to  supply  a  new  series  of 
"crops,  but  its  state  of  fertility  would  also  have  a  limit. 

"  A  soil  will  naturally  reach  its  point  of  exhaustion  sooner  the 
"less  rich  it  is  in  the  mineral  ingredients  necessary  as  food  for 
"  plants.  But  it  is  obvious  that  we  can  restore  the  soil  to  its 
"original  state  of  fertility  by  bringing  it  back  to  its  former  com- 
"  position  ;  that  is,  by  returning  to  it  the  constituents  removed  by 
"  the  various  crops  of  plants. 

"  Two  plants  may  be  cultivated  side  by  side,  or  successively, 
"when  they  require  unequal  quantities  of  the  same  constituents, 
"at  different  times-,  they  will  grow  luxuriantly  without  mutual 
"  injury,  if  they  require  for  their  development  different  ingredients 
"of  the  soil." 


"  Different  genera  of  plants  require  for  their  growth  and  perfect 
"  maturity  either  the  same  inorganic  means  of  nourishment,  although 
"  in  unequal  quantities  and  at  difierent  times,  or  they  require  dif- 
"  ferent  mineral  ingredients.  It  is  owing  to  the  difference  of  the 
"  food  necessary  for  the  growth  of  plants,  and  which  must  be 
"  furnished  by  the  soil,  that  different  kinds  of  plants  exert  mutual 
"  injury  when  growing  together,  and  that  others,  on  the  contrary, 
"grow  together  with  great  luxuriance." 

"  There  are  certain  ashes  of  plants  wholly  soluble  in  water, 
"  others  are  only  partially  soluble,  while  certain  kinds  yield  only 
"  traces  of  soluble  ingredients. 

"  When  the  parts  of  the  ashes  insoluble  in  water  are  treated 
"  with  an  acid,  Cmuriatic  acid,)  this  residue,  in  the  case  of  many 
"  plants,  is  quite  soluble  in  the  acids,  (as,  for  instance,  the  ashes 
"  of  beet,  turnips,  and  potatoes  ;)  with  other  plants,  only  half  the 
"residue  dissolves,  the  other   half  resisting   the  solvent  action  of 


220  HANDY- BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

''  the  acid  ;  while  in  the  case  of  certain  plants  only  a  third,  or 
"  even  less  of  the  residue  is  taken  up  by  the  acid. 

"  The  parts  of  the  ashes  soluble  in  cold  water  consist  entirely 
"  of  salts  with  alkaline  bases^  (^potash  and  soda.^  The  ingredients 
"  soluble  in  acids  are  salts  of  lime  and  magnesia  ;  and  the  residue 
"  insoluble  in  acids  consists  of  silica. 

*'  These  ingredients  being  so  different  in  their  beha\  ior  to  water 
*'  and  to  acids,  afford  us  a  means  of  classifying  the  cultivated  plants 
"  according  to  their  unequal  quantity  of  these  constituents.  Thus 
"  potash  plants  are  those  the  ashes  of  which  contain  more  than  half 
"  their  weight  of  soluble  alkaline  salts  -,  we  may  designate  as  lime 
*■'■  plants  and  as  silica  plants  those  in  which  lime  and  silica  respect- 
"  ively  predominate.  The  ingredients  thus  indicated  are  those 
"  which  form  the  distinguishing  characteristics  of  the  plants  which 
"  require  an  abundant  supply  of  them  for  their  growth. 

"  The  potash  plants  include  the  chenopodia,  arrach,  wormwood, 
"  etc.  ;  and  among  cultivated  plants,  the  beet,  mangel-wurzel, 
"  turnip,  and  maize.  The  lime  plants  comprehend  the  lichens, 
"  (containing  oxalate  of  lime,)  the  cactus,  (containing  crystallized 
"  tartrate  of  lime,)  clover,  beans,  peas,  and  tobacco.  Silica  plants 
"  include  wheat,  oats,  rye,  and  barley. 

Salts  of  Salts  of 

Potash  and  Lime  and  Silica. 

Soda.  Magnesia. 

r  Oat  straw  with  seeds 3400  400  62'oo 

Wheat  straw     2200  7-20  61  05 

Birley  straw  with  seeds 1900  *57=>  55  ^3 

Rye  straw 1865  16-52  6389 

Tobacco  (Havana) ^434  <^7"+4  8-30 

"        (Dutch) -307  6223  I5"-S 

"        (grown  in  an  artificial  soil)      2)00  59-00 


Silica  Planes. 


12-00 


Lime   Plants,   -'do  ^  , 

I     Pea  Straw 27-82  6374                7-81 

Potato  herb 4  20  5940              36*40 

1^  Meadow  clover 3920  5600                490 

TMiizestraw 7100                 650              1800 

Turnips 8160  1840 

Potash    Plants.  <     Beet-root 8800  1200 

[     Potatoes  (tubers) 8581  '4' '9 

I.,  Helianthus  tubcrosus 84-30  '5  7° 


ROTATIOX    OF    CR0P8.  221 

"  This  classification,  however,  is  obviously  only  a  very  general 
"  one,  and  permits  division  into  a  great  number  of  subordinate 
"  classes  ;  particularly  with  respect  to  those  plants  in  which  the 
"  alkalies  mav  be  replaced  by  lime  and  magnesia.        *        *        ¥ 

"  The  potato  plant  belongs  to  the  litiie  plants  as  far  as  regards 
"  the  ingredients  of  its  leaves,  but  its  tubers  (which  contain  only 
"  traces  of  lime)  belong  to  the  class  oi potash  plants.  With  refer- 
"  ence  to  the  siliceous  plants,  this  difference  of  their  parts  is  very 
"  marked. 

"  Barley  must  be  viewed  as  a  lime  plant,  when  compared  with 
"  oats  or  with  wheat,  in  reference  to  their  ingredients  soluble  in 
**  muriatic  acid  ;  but  it  would  be  considered  as  a  siliceous  plant,  if 
*'  viewed  onlv  in  reference  to  its  amount  of  silica.  Beet -root 
"  contains  phosphate  of  magnesia,  and  only  traces  of  lime,  while 
*'  the  turnip  contains  phosphate  of  lime  and  only  traces  of  mag- 
"•  nesia. 

"  When  we  take  into  consideration  the  quantity  of  ashes,  and 
"  their  known  composition,  we  are  enabled  to  calculate  with  ease, 
"■  not  only  the  particular  ingredients  removed  trom  a  soil,  but  also 
"  the  degree  in  which  it  is  exhausted  of  these  bv  certain  species  of 
"  plants  belonging  to  the  potash^  I'lme^  or  siliceous  plants.  This  will 
"  be  rendered  obvious  by  the  following  examples  : — 

"A  soil,  consisting  of  four  Hessian  acres,  has  removed  from  it  by  a  crop  of — 

Salts  of  potash  Salts  of  lime,  magnesia, 

and  soda.  and  peroxide  of  iron.  Silica, 

lbs.  lbs.  lbs.  lbs.  lbs. 

„ri  fin   Straw qc"-Jl  1  tat^I      ,  , 

Wheat.<  ,                           •    •        ^3  :5     Vi:!0-i:i  ^     ,'      \    67-55  26005 

(In   corn 35-20  j     -'     ■'  32-bo  J        '   ■'■'  -" 

r,  f  In  straw 150-40)  354-80)  ,  ,, 

Peas.      \^  ^     ^     -194-42  I/:or37''46  4660 

\^  In  corn 44'oi  J     ^^  ^  1 6-6S  J  ^ '     ^ 

„  (  In  straw 40-7-3  )     „       o  3600  )  „ 

Rve.       -'  *•-    /J   .    82-73  oh     5702  13977 

I  In  corn 4-"oS  i  21-82  J     ^'  ^^  ' ' 

Beet-root  without  leaves 361-00  37'84 

Helianthus  tuberosus 556-00  104-00 

"The  same  surface  is  deprived  by  these  crops  of  the  following  quantity  of  phos- 
"  phatcs ; — 


Helianthus 

Peas. 

Wheat. 

Rye. 

tuberosus. 

Turnips, 

117 

112-43 

7705 

122 

3784 

222  HAXDY-BOOK    OF   HUSBANDRY. 

*'  According  to  the  preceding  views,  plants  must  obtain  from 
"  the  soil  certain  constituents,  in  order  to  enable  them  to  reach 
"  perfect  maturity — that  is,  to  enable  them  to  bear  blossoms  and 
"  fruit.  The  growth  of  a  plant  is  verv  limited  in  pure  water,  in 
*'  pure  silica,  or  in  a  soil  from  which  these  ingredients  are  absent. 
"  If  there  be  not  present  in  the  soil  alkalies,  lime,  and  magnesia, 
"  the  stem,  leaves,  and  blossoms  of  the  plants  can  only  be  formed 
"  in  proportion  to  the  quantity  of  these  substances  existing  as  a 
"  provision  in  the  seed.  When  phosphates  are  wanting,  the  seeds 
'*  cannot  be  formed. 

*■'■  The  more  quickly  a  plant  grows,  the  more  rapidly  do  its  leaves 
"  increase  in  number  and  in  size,  and  therefore  the  supply  of 
"  alkaline  bases  must  be  greater  in  a  given  time. 

'*  As  all  plants  remove  from  the  soil  certain  constituents,  it  is 
"  quite  ob\ious  that  none  of  them  can  render  it  either  richer  or 
"  more  fertile  for  a  plant  of  another  kind.  If  we  convert  into 
"  arable  land  a  soil  which  has  grown  for  centuries  wood,  or  a 
*'  vegetation  which  has  not  changed,  and  if  we  spread  over  this 
"  soil  the  ashes  of  the  wood  and  of  the  bushes,  we  have  added  to 
"  that  contained  in  the  soil  a  new  provision  of  alkaline  bases, 
*'  and  of  phosphates,  which  may  suffice  for  a  hundred  or  more 
"  crops  of  certain  plants.  If  the  soil  contains  silicates  susceptible 
*■*■  of  disintegration,  there  will  also  be  present  in  it  soluble  sili<;ate 
"  of  potash  or  soda,  which  is  necessary  for  the  rendering  mature 
*'  the  stem  of  the  siliceous  plant  ;  and,  with  the  phosphates 
*' already  present,  we  have  in  such  a  soil  all  the  conditions  neces- 
"  sarv  to  sustain  uninterrupted  crops  of  corn  for  a  series  of  years. 

*'  If  this  soil  be  either  deficient  or  wanting  in  the  silicates,  but  yet 
*'  contain  an  abundant  quantity  of  salts  of  lime  and  of  phosphates, 
"  we  will  be  enabled  to  obtain  from  it,  for  a  number  of  years,  suc- 
*■'•  cessive  crops  of  tobacco,  peas,  beans,  etc.,  and  wine. 

*'  But,  if  none  of  the  ingredients  furnished  to  these  plants  be 
"  again  returned  to  the  soil,  a  time  must  come  when  it  can  no 
"  longer  furnish  these  constituents  to  a  new  vegetation,  when  it 
"  must  become  completely  exhausted,  and  be  at  last  quito  sterile, 
*'  even  for  weeds. 


ROTATION    OF    CROPS.  223 

"  This  state  of  sterility  will  take  place  earlier  for  one  kind  of 
"  plant  than  for  another,  according  to  the  unequal  quantity  of  the 
"  different  ingredients  of  the  soil.  If  the  soil  is  poor  in  phos- 
"  phates,  but  rich  in  silicates,  it  will  be  exhausted  sooner  b^•  the 
"  cultivation  of  wheat  than  by  that  of  oats  or  of  barley,  because  a 
''greater  quantity  of  phospliates  is  removed  in  the  seeds  and  straw 
"  of  one  crop  of  wheat  than  would  be  removed  in  three  or  four 
"  crops  of  barley  or  of  oats.  But  if  this  soil  be  deficient  in  lime, 
"  the  barley  will  grow  upon  it  very  imperfectly." 

^  ii:  ^  ^  ^  ^  ^ 

"  In  a  soil  rich  in  alkaline  silicates,  but  containing  only  a  limited 
"  supply  of  phosphates,  the  period  of  its  exhaustion  for  these  salts 
"  will  be  delayed  if  we  alternate  with  the  wheat  plants,  which 
"  we  cut  before  thev  have  come  to  seed  ;  or,  what  is  the  same 
"  thing,  with  plants  that  remove  from  the  soil  only  a  small  quan- 
"  tity  of  phosphates.  If  we  culti\ate  on  this  soil  peas  or  beans, 
"  these  plants  will  leave,  after  the  removal  of  the  crop,  a  quantity 
"  of  silica  in  a  soluble  state  sufficient  for  a  succeeding  crop  of 
"  wheat  ;  but  they  will  exhaust  the  soil  of  phosphates  quite  as 
"  much  as  wheat  itself,  because  the  seeds  of  both  require  for  their 
"  maturity  nearly  an  equal  quantity  of  these  salts. 

"  We  are  enabled  to  delay  the  period  of  exhaustion  of  a  soil  of 
"  phosphates  by  adopting  a  rotation,  in  which  potatoes,  tobacco, 
"  or  clover,  are  made  to  alternate  with  a  v/hite  crop.  The  seeds 
"  of  the  plants  now  named  are  small,  and  contain  proportionally 
"  only  minute  quantities  of  phosphates  ;  their  roots  and  leaves, 
"  also,  db  not  require  much  of  these  salts  for  their  maturity.  But 
"  it  must  be  remembered,  at  the  same  time,  that  each  of  these  has 
"  rendered  the  soil  poorer,  by  a  certain  quantity  of  phosphates. 
"  By  the  rotation  adopted,  we  ha\e  deferred  the  period  of  exhaus- 
"  tion,  and  have  obtained  in  the  crops  a  greater  weight  of  sugar, 
"  starch,  etc.,  but  we  have  not  acquired  any  larger  quantity  of  the 
"  constituents  of  the  blood,  or  of  the  only  substances  which  can  be 
"  considered  as  properly  the  nutritious  parts  of  plants.  When  the 
"  soil  is  deficient  in  salts  of  lime,  tobacco,  clover,  and  peas  will 
**  not  flourish  ;  while  under  the  same  conditions  the  growth  of 
15 


224  HAX1)Y-B0  0K    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

*•'  beet-root  or  turnips  will  not  be  impeded,  if  the  soil,  at  the  same 
"  time,  contain  a  proper  quantity  of  alkalies. 

"  When  a  soil  contains  silicates  not  prone  to  disintegrate,  it 
*'  may  be  able,  in  its  natural  state,  to  liberate  by  the  influence  of 
"  the  atmosphere,  in  three  or  four  years,  only  as  much  silica  as 
*■'■  suffices  for  one  crop  of  wheat.  In  this  case,  such  a  crop  can 
*'  only  be  grown  on  it  in  a  three  or  four  years*  rotation,  assuming 
"  that  the  phosphates  necessary  for  the  formation  of  the  seeds 
'■'■  exist  in  the  soil  in  sufficient  quantity.  But  we  can  shorten  this 
*'  period  by  working  well  the  soil,  and  by  increasing  its  surface, 
*'  so  as  to  make  it  more  accessible  to  the  action  of  the  air  and 
"  moisture,  in  order  to  disintegrate  the  soil,  and  to  procure  a  greater 
*'  proyision  of  soluble  silicates.  The  decomposition  of  the  sili- 
*'  cates  may  also  be  accelerated  by  the  use  of  burnt  lime  ;  but  it  is 
*'  certain  that,  although  all  these  means  may  enable  us  to  insure 
*'  rich  crops  for  a  certain  period,  they  induce,  at  the  same  time, 
"  an  earlier  exhaustion  of  the  soil,  and  impair  its  natural  state  of 
"fertility. 

******* 

"  It  follows,  then,  from  the  preceding  obseryations,  that  the 
*'  adyantage  of  the  alternate  system  of  husbandry  consists  in  the 
*'  fact  that  the  cultiyated  plants  abstract  from  the  soil  unequal 
*'  quantities  of  certain  nutritious  matters. 

"  A  fertile  soil  must  contain  in  sufficient  quantity,  and  in  a 
*'  form  adapted  for  assimilation,  all  the  inorganic  materials  indis- 
*'  pensablc  for  the  growth  of  plants. 

"  A  field  artificially  prepared  for  culture  contains  a-  certain 
"■  amount  of  these  ingredients,  and  also  of  ammoniacal  salts  and 
**•  decaying  yegctablc  matter.  The  system  of  rotation  adopted  on 
"  such  a  field  is,  that  a  potash  plant  (turnips  or  potatoes)  is  suc- 
*' ceeded  by  a  silica  plant,  and  the  latter  is  followed  by  a  lime 
*' plant.  All  these  plants  require  phosphates  and  alkalies — the 
*'  potash  plant  requiring  the  largest  quantity  of  the  latter  and  the 
*'  smallest  tjuantity  of  the  former.  The  silica  plants  require,  in 
'*  addition  to  the  soluble  silica  left  by  the  potash  plants,  a  consid- 
*■'■  erable  arnount  of  phosphates  j   and  the  succeeding  lime  plants 


ROTATIOX    OF    CROPS,  225 

"  (peas  or  clover)  are  capable  of  exhausting  the  soil  of  this  impor- 
"  tant  ingredient  to  such  an  extent  that  there  is  only  sufficient 
"  left  to  enable  a  crop  of  oats  or  of  rye  to  form  their  seeds. 

"  The  number  of  crops  which  may  be  obtained  from  the  soil 
"  depends  upon  the  quantity  of  the  phosphates,  of  the  alkalies,  or 
"  of  lime,  and  the  salts  of  magnesia  existing  in  it. 

"  The  existing  provision  may  suffice  for  two  successive  crops 
*'  of  a  potash  or  of  a  lime  plant,  or  for  three  or  four  more  crops  of 
"  a  silica  plant,  or  it  may  suffice  for  five  or  seven  crops  of  all 
"  taken  together  ;  but  after  this  time  all  mineral  substances  re- 
"  moved  from  the  field,  in  the  form  of  fruits,  herbs,  or  straw, 
"  must  again  be  returned  to  it  ;  the  equilibrium  must  be  restored, 
"  if  we  desire  to  retain  the  field  in  its  original  state  of  fertility. 

*' This  is  effected  by  means  of  manure." 

Since  these  views  were  published,  further  investigation  of  the 
subject  has  so  far  modified  the  opinions  of  scientific  men,  that 
Liebig's  statements  (concerning  silica  especially)  are  no  longer 
accepted  as  correct  in  all  their  details.  His  general  principles,  on 
the  other  hand,  have  only  been  more  fully  demonstrated  to  be 
correct,  and  the  deductions  that  he  draws  from  them,  so  far  as  the 
practice  of  farming  is  concerned,  bear  with  undiminished  force. 

To  continue  the  quotation  from  this  author's  works,  I  take 
from  his  "Modern  Ao-riculture"*  the  following;  : — 

"  Innumerable  facts  have  taught  the  practical  farmer  that,  in 
"  many  cases,  the  successful  cultivation  of  an  after-crop  on  a  field 
"  depends  upon  the  nature  of  the  preceding  crop,  and  that  it  is  by 
"  no  means  a  matter  of  indifference  in  what  succession  or  rotation 
"  he  grows  his  crops.  The  previous  cultivation  of  some  under- 
"  ground  crop,  or  some  plant  with  extensive  root  ramifications, 
*'  will  tend  to  make  the  soil  more  favorable  for  the  subsequent 
"  growth  of  a  cereal.  The  latter  will,  in  such  cases,  thrive  better, 
"and  it  will  do  so  without  the  use  (or  with  the  sparing  application) 
"  of  manure,  and  will  yield  a  more  abundant  crop.  But  as  re- 
"  gards  succeeding  harvests,  there  has  been  in  reality  no  saving  of 

*  "Modern  Agriculture."     J.  Von  Liebig.      Munich,  1859. 


226  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"  manure,  nor  has  the  field  increased  in  the  conditions  of  its  fer- 
"  tility.  There  has  been  no  augmentation  in  the  gross  amount  of 
"  the  elements  of  food  in  the  soil,  but  simply  an  increase  of  the 
"  available  effective  portion  of  these  elements,  and  an  acceleration 
"  of  the  results  in  a  given  time. 

"  The  physical  and  chemical  condition  of  the  fields  has  been 
"  improved,  but  the  chemical  store  has  been  reduced  •,  all  plants^ 
"  iL'ithout  exception^  exhaust  the  soil^  each  of  them  in  its  oiun  way^  of 
*'  the  conditions  for  their  reproduction. 

"  There  are  fields  that  will  yield  without  manuring  for  six, 
"  twelve,  fifty,  or  a  hundred  years  successively,  crops  of  cereals, 
"  potatoes,  vetches,  clover,  or  any  other  plants,  and  the  whole 
"  produce  can  be  carried  away  from  the  land  ;  but  the  inevitable 
"  result  is  at  last  the  same,  the  soil  loses  its  fertility. 

"  In  the  produce  of  his  field,  the  farmer  sells  in  reality  his 
"  land  ;  he  sells  in  his  crops  certain  elements  of  the  atmosphere 
"  that  are  constantly  being  replaced  from  that  inexhaustible  store, 
"  and  certain  constituents  of  the  soil  that  are  his  property,  and 
"  which  have  served  to  form,  out  of  the  atmospheric  elements, 
"  the  body  of  the  plant,  of  which  they  themselves  also  constitute 
"  component  parts.  In  altogether  alienating  the  crops  of  his 
"  fields,  he  deprives  the  land  of  the  conditions  for  their  rcproduc- 
"  tion.  A  system  of  farming  based  upon  such  principles  justly 
"  deserves  to  be  branded  as  a  system  of  spoliation.  Had  all  of 
"  the  constituents  of  the  soil  carried  off  from  the  field  in  the 
''  produce  sold,  been,  year  after  year,  or  rotation  after  rotation, 
*'  completely  restored  to  the  land,  the  latter  would  have  preserved 
"  its  fertility  to  the  fullest  extent  ;  the  gain  of  the  farmer  would, 
"  indeed,  have  been  reduced  by  the  repurchase  of  the  alienated 
*'  constituents  of  the  soil,  but  it  would  thereby  have  been  rendered 
'*  permanent. 

"The  constituents  of  the  soil  are  the  farmer's  capital,  the 
"  elements  of  food  supplied  by  the  atmosphere  the  interest  of  this 
"  capital  -,  by  means  of  the  former  he  produces  the  latter.  In 
"  selling;  the  produce  of  his  farm  he  alienates  a  portion  of  his 
"  capital  and  the  interest  j  in  returning  to  the  land  the  constituents 


ROTATION    OF     CROPS.  227 

"  of  the  soil  removed  in  the  crops  he  simply  restores  his  capital 
"  to  his  field. 

"  Every  system  of  farming  based  on  the  spoliation  of  the  land 
"  leads  to  poverty.  The  country  in  Europe  which,  in  its  time, 
*''most  abounded  in  gold  and  silver  was,  nevertheless,  the  poorest. 
"  All  the  treasures  of  Mexico  and  Peru  brought  to  Spain  by  the 
*'  richly  laden  sih'er  fleets  melted  away  in  the  hands  of  the  nation, 
*'  because  the  Spaniards  had  forgotten,  or  no  longer  practiced,  the 
"  art  of  making  the  money  return  to  them  which  they  had  put 
*'  into  circulation  in  commerce  to  supply  their  wants  ;  because 
"  thev  did  not  know  how  to  produce  articles  of  exchange  required 
*'  by  other  nations  who  were  in  possession  of  their  money.  There 
"  is  no  other  way  of  maintaining  the  wealth  of  a  nation. 

''  It  is  not  the  land  in  itself  that  constitutes  the  farmer's  wealth, 
*'  but  it  is  in  the  constituents  of  the  soil,  which  serve  for  the 
"  nutrition  of  plants,  that  this  wealth  truly  consists.  By  means  of 
*'  these  constituents  alone,  he  is  enabled  to  produce  the  conditions 
"  indispensable  to  man  for  the  preservation  of  the  temperature  of 
"  his  body,  and  of  his  ability  to  work.  Rational  Agriculture^  in 
"  contradistinction  to  the  spoliation  system  of  farming,  is  based 
*'  upon  the  principle  of  restitution  ;  by  giving  back  to  his  fields 
"  the  conditions  of  their  fertility  the  farmer  insures  the  perma- 
"  nence  of  the  latter. 

"  The  deplorable  efi'ects  of  the  spoliation  system  of  farming  are 
*'  nowhere  more  strikinglv  evident  than  in  America,  where  the 
*'  early  colonists  in  Canada,  in  the  State  of  New  York,  in  Pennsyl- 
"  vania,  Virginia,  Maryland,  etc.,  found  tracts  of  land,  which  for 
"  manv  years,  by  simply  plowing  and  sowing,  yielded  a  succession 
"  of  abundant  wheat  and  tobacco  harvests.  No  falling  off  in  the 
"  weight  or  quality  of  the  crops  reminded  the  farmer  of  the  ne- 
*'  cessity  of  restoring  to  the  land  the  constituents  of  the  soil 
"  carried  away  in  the  produce. 

"  We  all  know  what  has  become  of  these  fields.  In  less  than 
*'  two  generations,  though  originally  so  teeming  with  fertility,  they 
"  were  turned  into  deserts,  and,  in  many  districts,  brought  to  such 
"  a  state  of  absolute  exhaustion  that,  even  now,  after  having  lain 


228  HAXDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"  fallow  more  than  a  hundred  years,  they  will  not  yield  a  remuner- 
^'ative  crop  of  a  cereal  plant," 

While  the  case  with  reference  to  the  regions  of  America,  to 
which  allusion  is  made,  is  perhaps  too  strongly  stated,  the  principle 
on  which  those  statements  are  made  is  entirely  correct,  and  there 
can  be  no  greater  fallacy  than  to  suppose,  as  many  of  our  farmers 
do,  that  a  well-selected  rotation  of  crops  furnishes  a  sure  means 
for  constantly  increasing  the  fertility  of  the  land.  While  one  crop 
may  prepare  the  soil  for  the  growth  of  another,  and  while 
during  the  growth  of  one  crop  certain  elements  which  another 
would  require  are  developed  by  natural  agencies  acting  within  the 
soil,  the  efTect  of  all  cropping — that  is,  of  the  removal  of  vege- 
tation from  the  land  on  which  it  grows — is  to  lessen  the  supply  of 
mineral  ingredients  in  the  soil  ;  and  the  longer  we  may  be  enabled 
to  carry  on  such  a  process  the  more  complete  will  be  the  exhaus- 
tion of  the  land  in  the  long  run. 

Certain  excellent  writers  in  America  and  in  other  countries  are 
devoting  a  great  deal  of  attention  to  the  question  of  renovating  the 
soil  by  the  growth  of  clover ;  and,  so  far  as  the  present  result  of 
the  practice  is  concerned,  they  have  every  thing  their  own  way  ; 
that  is  to  say,  it  is  an  almost  invariable  result  of  the  growth  of  this 
plant  that  the  increased  fertility  which  its  advocates  promise  is 
sure  to  follow.  By  reference  to  the  subject  of  "  Green  Crops  " 
in  the  preceding  chapter,  it  will  he  seen  that  the  power  of  certain 
plants  to  prepare  for  the  uses  of  other  plants  certain  elements  of  the 
soil  not  previously  fitted  for  assimilation  by  them  is  very  great. 
And  it  is  this  action  on  which  the  confidence  in  clover  culture  is 
based  •,  and  it  may  be  set  down  as  a  fact,  that  any  land  on  which, 
by  the  aid  of  plaster  or  any  other  fertilizer,  even  a  tolerable  crop 
of  clover  may  be  grown  may  be,  without  the  application  of  any 
other  manure,  brought,  generally  within  a  short  time,  to  a  high 
state  of  fertility. 

But  there  is  one  feature  of  the  case  which  these  writers  over- 
look, or  the  existence  of  which  they  persistently  deny  ;  that  is, 
that  so  far  as  the  earthy  constituents  of  vegetation  are  concerned, 
the   effect  of  the   clover   is   simply  to    develop    matters    already 


ROTATION    OF    CROPS.  229 

existing  in  the  soil,  and  the  removal  of  these  matters  by  other 
crops,  which  are  sold  away,  must  inevitably  lessen  the  total  amount 
of  them  contained  in  the  soil. 

The  fact  that  within  a  few  years,  or  even  within  a  few  genera- 
tions, their  supply  may  not  be  reduced  to  so  low  a  point  as  to 
prevent  the  cultivation  of  valuable  crops  is  no  argument  in  favor 
of  a  blind  dependence  upon  them.  As  surely  as  two  and  two 
make  four,  and  two  taken  from  four  leave  only  two  to  be  taken 
again,  just  so  surely  will  it,  sooner  or  later,  be  found  that  from 
a  given,  (limited,)  quantity  of  phosphoric  acid  in  the  soil,  a  yearly 
quantitv  cannot  be  taken  without  reducing  the  amount  that  is 
left.  And  if,  by  the  growth  of  clover,  we  succeed  in  hunting  out 
the  last  hiding-place  of  an  atom  of  phosphoric  acid,  and  placing  it 
within  the  reach  of  a  crop  of  wheat  that  is  to  be  sold,  we  shall 
render  the  ultimate  exhaustion  of  the  soil  complete  ;  whereas,  by 
a  judicious  return  of  what  is  taken  away,  we  might  make  most 
valuable  and  repeated  use  of  the  soil's  constituents.  If  we  depend 
upon  it  alone  and  return  nothing  but  what  It  contains,  we  shall 
finally  reach  a  point  where  not  even  clover,  where  no  crop  can 
be  grown,  and  from  which  it  will  be  impossible  to  regain  fertility 
without  the  expenditure  of  more  money  than  the  land  would  be 
worth. 

I  should  be  glad  if  I  could  add  to  the  completeness  of  this  book 
by  specifying  certain  rotations  as  being  the  best  to  adopt  under 
certain  circumstances,  and  I  have  tried  hard  in  an  examination  of 
the  rotations  followed  in  different  regions  to  do  this.  But  the  re- 
sult of  my  investigations  has  been  simply  to  convince  me  that 
there  are  so  many  circumstances  of  soil,  climate,  locality,  market, 
home  supply,  and  need  of  selling  crops  in  order  to  get  money  for 
special  uses,  and,  after  all,  so  much  to  be  left  to  the  fancy  or 
whim  of  the  farmer,  that  it  is  not  safe  to  do  more  than  to  state 
general  principles,  which  bear  equally  on  all  cases,  and,  in  view 
of  which,  each  cultivator  should  select  for  himself,  after  due  con- 
sideration, the  system  of  cultivation  that  it  will  be  best  for  him  to 
adhere  to. 

This  selection,  however,  shoulJ  nut  be  made  without  such  con- 


230  HANDY- BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

sideration,  for  it  costs  a  good  deal  of  trouble  to  arrange  a  farm 
for  a  systematic  course  of  rotation,  and  the  trouble  will  be  equally 
great,  if  not  even  greater,  in  changing  the  system  after  it  has  once 
been  decided  upon. 

If  the  system  of  soiling  be  adopted,  either  entirely  or  mainly,  it 
will  be  better,  where  it  is  practicable,  to  do  away  completely  with 
all  interior  fences,  and  to  divide  the  land  into  so  many  parts  as 
there  are  crops  to  be  grown,  the  crops  of  each  to  follow  in  the 
course  of  the  rotation.  But  where  pasture  forms  a  considerable 
element  fences  will  be  necessary,  and  it  should  then  be  the  study 
of  the  farmer  to  make  them  conform  as  nearly  as  possible  to  the 
requirements  of  his  rotation,  and,  also,  to  the  necessity,  which 
may  be  greater  or  less  in  different  cases,  of  having  more  than  one 
field  for  pasture. 

It  has  been  advocated  by  Prof.  Ville  and  others,  that,  under 
certain  circumstances,  where  there  is  a  ready  sale  for  particular 
crops,  the  system  of  rotation  should  be  dispensed  with,  and  that 
only  such  crops  should  be  grown  as  will  find  a  ready  market. 
There  is  no  doubt  that,  within  certain  limits,  this  course  may  be 
followed  with  advantage  ;  but  it  is  not  a  safe  one  to  recommend 
for  any  thing  like  general  adoption,  and  it  is  only  where  the  crop 
grown  is  such  as  to  keep  the  soil  in  a  high  state  of  fertility,  or 
where  special  fertilizers  can  be  secured  with  special  ease,  that  it 
will  be  found  at  all  practicable.  Indeed,  there  is  no  case,  so  far 
as  my  experience  extends,  except,  perhaps,  with  the  cultivation  of 
onions  and  permanent  grasses,  where  purely  agricultural  crops 
can  be  so  well  grown  without  rotation  as  with  it.  And,  in  ad- 
dition to  this,  the  advantage  of  having  work  for  a  given  force  of 
men  and  teams  during  the  whole  season  is  a  very  great  one,  and 
this  is  rarely  compatible  with  the  requirements  of  any  special  cul- 
tivation. 

In  certain  favored  districts,  such  as  the  blue-grass  region  of 
Kentucky,  it  is  best  to  keep  the  land  in  grass  as  long  as  possible — 
indeed,  sometimes  it  may  be  kept  permanently  in  grass  ;  but  on 
average  farms  it  will  pay  better,  and,  consequently,  it  will  be  better, 
to  constantly  vary  the  crop  to  which  any  field  is  devoted. 


ROTATION    OP    CROPS.  231 

I  cannot  better  close  this  chapter  than  by  quoting  (almost  entire) 
an  article  on  the  "  Rotation  of  Crops,"  furnished  to  the  New 
York  Tribune^  by  the  Hon.  George  Geddes,  of  Syracuse,  N.  Y. 

Although  he  attaches  less  importance  to  the  cultivation  of 
root  crops  than  seems  to  me  just,  his  remarks  are  so  sensible  and 
so  practical  that  they  should  be  carefully  read  by  all  farmers  :— 
"  The  idea  of  preserving  the  fertility  of  land,  and  at  the  same 
time  greatly  increasing  the  aggregate  of  crops  produced,  by  a  ju- 
dicious rotation^  is  quite  modern. 

"  In  England  great  attention  is  paid  to  rotation,  and  many 
elaborate  experiments  have  been  made  and  reported  in  the  agri- 
cultural works  of  that  country,  showing  its  importance  and  its 
influence  in  increasing  the  agricultural  productions  of  the  king- 
dom. 

"  English  writers  have  marked  out  with  much  care  various 
systems  of  rotation  of  crops,  giving  the  proper  place  to  each,  in 
view  of  the  food  it  demands  of  the  soil,  and  its  power  to  appro- 
priate the  food  that  may  be  derived  from  the  different  stages  of 
decomposition  of  the  various  manures  used. 

"  The  only  useful  lesson  we  American  farmers  can  derive  from 
all  this  English  knowledge  is  the  proof  that  a  proper  rotation  does 
preserve  the  fertility  of  the  soil,  and  greatly  increase  its  products, 
when  the  ao-gregate  is  considered. 

CO       o 

*'  The  climate  of  England  is  so  unlike  ours  that  we  must  strike 
out  for  ourselves  in  laving  down  our  plans  of  rotation.  We  have 
a  climate  that  matures  in  its  perfection  the  most  valuable  cereal, 
all  things  considered,  that  a  beneficent  Providence  has  given  to 
man — that  England  cannot  produce  In  the  open  air  at  all — I 
refer  to  maize  or  Indian  corn,  a  native  of  our  own  country,  and 
adapted,  in  its  different  varieties,  to  nearly  every  part  of  the 
United  States. 

"  Admirers  of  English  systems  of  agriculture  have  long  urged 
on  the  American  farmers  extensive  cultivation  of  root  crops. 
Though  constantly  urged  thereto,  the  practical  Yankee  has 
gone  on  raising  his  Indian  corn,  well  knowing  that,  as  a  leading 
croD,  it  was,  beyond  all  comparison,  of  more  value,  in  view  of  its 


232  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

*'  cost,  than  anv  root  crop,  for  his  own  food,  or  for  food  for  his  cat- 
*•'  tie,  sheep,  and  horses.  Near  cities,  root  crops  will  be  culti- 
"  vated  •,  but  far  awav  from  markets,  where  land  is  comparatively 
"  cheap,  the  wise  farmer  will  onlv  produce  roots  for  special  purposes, 
"  such  as  feed  for  ewes  having  lambs  in  early  spring,  or  as  a  condi- 
*'  ment  for  some  pet  animal.  For  special  reasons,  a  farmer  of  my 
"  acquaintance  has  his  lambs  yeaned  in  December  and  January,  to 
"  the  number  of  two  or  three  hundred.  This  man  raises  about 
"  eight  acres  of  roots  to  feed  with  his  dry  hay  to  the  mothers  of 
*'  these  lambs,  and  by  the  time  grass  comes  the  next  spring  these 
'*  lambs  weigh  fifty,  sixty,  or  even  more  pounds  each.  This  man 
*'  can  afford  to  do  as  he  does,  but  his  case  is  a  very  peculiar  one. 

"  The  stalks  of  an  acre  of  corn  are  generally  considered  by 
*'  farmers  in  Central  New  York  to  be  worth  as  much  as  an  acre 
*'  of  hay  to  feed  their  stock  in  winter.  The  stalks  should  pay 
"  for  the  whole  cost  of  the  corn  crop  up  to  husking.  The  acre 
"  of  grain  should  average  not  less  than  2,500  pounds  when  dry. 
"  One  pound  of  corn  will  feed  a  fattening  sheep  one  day,  and 
"eight  pounds  will  feed  a  fattening  steer  a  day,  the  proper  quan- 
"  tity  of  hay  or  other  forage  being  given  in  each  case. 

"  The  Illinois  farmer  is  quite  as  likely  to  continue  to  raise  great 
"  fields  of  Indian  corn,  and  go  on  feeding  it  in  his  wasteful  way, 
"  and  totally  neglect  raising  roots  to  feed  his  cattle,  as  the  Eng- 
*'  lishman  in  Canada  is  to  follow  up  his  traditions  and  feed  roots 
"during  his  hyperborean  winters.  At  any  rate,  all  exhortations 
"  to  the  Western  corn-raisers  on  this  point  are  useless,  for  he 
*'  thinks  he  knows  what  he  is  about — and  he  does. 

"  With  these  preliminary  remarks  we  will  discuss  the  question 
"  of  rotation,  counting  Indian  corn  in,  and  root  crops  out. 

*'0UR  ROTATION. 

**  First  Tear. — The  land  ha\  ing  been  well  seeded  with  tim- 
'*othy  grass  and  medium  red  clover,  the  first  crop  taken  is  hay. 


ROTATION    OF    CROPS.  233 


CLOVER-SEED    CROP. 


"  As  soon  as  the  hay  has  been  removed  from  the  ground,  the 
''  clover  starts  a  new  growth  ;  and  as  gypsum  is  appHed  and  warm 
"  rains  come,  by  the  middle  of  the  month  of  September  there  will 
"  ordinarily  be  a  fine  crop  of  seed  matured  and  ready  to  cut. 
"  This  seed  crop  has  varied  with  us  from  one  to  seven  bushels  to-. 
"  the  acre.  It  is  not  the  custom  here  to  cut  this  seed  crop  close 
"  to  the  ground,  but  to  leave  a  very  considerable  proportion 
*'  standing.  We  do  not  wish  to  get  much  more  than  the  heads, 
"  preferring  to  leave  most  of  the  stalks  on  the  ground.  Of 
"  course,  in  doing  this,  we  do  not  get  all  the  seed. 

"  In  -the  seed  crop  the  timothy  shows  but  little,  but  it  has 
*'  helped  make  a  good  sod,  and  was  of  considerable  value  in  the 
"  hav  crop.  The  crop  of  hay  should  not  average,  for  a  series  of 
"  years,  less  than  two  tons  to  the  acre,  weighed  the  next  winter, 
"  and  the  seed  crop  should  average  three  bushels  to  the  acre. 

"This  is  the  way  we  manage  the  first  year  of  our  rotation, 
"  taking  two  valuable  crops. 

"  Second  Tear. — This  vear  is  devoted  to  pasture,  with  the  ex- 
"  pectation  that  each  acre  will  abundantly  feed  one  cow  in  an 
"  ordinary  season. 

"  Gypsum,  sown  about  the  first  day  of  May  on  this  pasture, 
*'  brings  forward  the  white  clover,  which  abounds,  self-sown.,  in 
"  our  pastures  ;  and  the  timothy  and  natural  grasses  will  make  a 
"  dense  sod  several  inches  thick,  and  the  red  clover  roots  will  get 
"  to  their  greatest  depth  and  size,  such  of  them  as  are  left. 

^'■Third  Tear — Indian  Corn. — About  the  tenth  day  of  May  plow 
"  the  land  in  the  most  perfect  manner  possible,  and  deep  enough 
"to  bring  on  top  of  the  reversed  sod  a  sufficient  supply  of  soil 
"  that  is  not  held  too  firmly  together  by  the  grass  roots  to  allow 
"  of  harrowing  and  marking  without  disturbing  the  sod.  The 
"  roots  of  the  red  clover  will  be  either  cut  off  by  the  plow  or 
"  drawn  out  by  it.  Six  or  seven  inclines  will  be  about  the  least 
"  depth  to  give  the  plowing. 


234  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"  Indian  corn  is  a  gross  feeder,  and  will  send  its  roots  through 
*  the  sod  and  down  below  it  to  a  great  depth,  unless  the  subsoil 
'  is  so  hard  the)-  cannot  penetrate  it.  As  the  grass  roots  decay 
'  they  furnish  food  to  this  wonderful  plant.  I  say  wonderful, 
'  for  in  about  one  hundred  days  an  immense  crop  of  stalks,  and 
'perhaps  3,000  pounds  of  the  richest  grain  (second  only  in  its 
'  fattening  powers  to  flaxseed)  will  be  produced. 

"  When  the  crop  is  sufficiently  ripened,  it  should  be  cut  near 
'  the  ground,  and  put  in  '  stooks'  to  cure  ;  and  no  cattle  should 
'  be  allowed  to  tramp  oyer  the  field  in  the  late  autumn  or  early 
'winter,  to  make  tracks  in  and  puddle  the  soil.  In  warm  cli- 
'  mates,  where  the  larger  yarieties  of  corn  are  raised,  this  process 
'  of  haryesting  cannot  be  adopted,  and  on  sandy  or  other  loose 
'  soils  it  is  not  so  important  to  keep  cattle  off  the  field. 

'•'•Fourth  Tear. — Barley  or  oats  are  sown  on  the  corn-stubble, 
'  the  ground  being  plowed  but  once,  but  that  one  plowing  being 
'  done  perfectly,  after  the  ground  has  properly  dried  in  the  spring, 
'  cutting  narrow,  deep  furrows. 

"  Some  farmers  entertain  the  opinion  that  barley  is  the  best 
'  crop  to  precede  wheat.  If  the  ground  is  clean,  that  is,  free 
'  from  Canada  thistles  and  other  bad  weeds,  it  is  ;  but  if  the 
'  ground  is  not  in  first-rate  condition  in  this  respect,  oats  are 
'  better. 

"  Barley  must  be  sown  early  to  warrant  the  expectation  of  a 
'good  crop.  Oats  should  be  sown  two  weeks  or  so  later  than 
'  barley.  By  sowing  an  oat  crop  late,  time  is  given  for  the 
'  thistles  and  other  foul  stuff  to  commence  growing,  and  make 
'  quite  a  show  above  the  ground  before  the  plowing  ;  then  a 
'  perfect  plowing  does  much  for  their  extirpation,  and  the  warm 
'  weather,  that  at  that  time  of  the  season  may  be  reasonably 
'  expected,  will  force  the  oat  crop  forward,  and  gi\e  it  greatly 
'the  start  of  the  weeds,  and  thus  the  crop  will  out-top  and  keep 
'  under  these  pests.  Another  consideration  is  the  character  of 
'the  soil,  in  deciding  whether  barley  or  oats  shall  be  selected  for 
'  the  crop  of  the  fourth  year.  Barley  delights  in  a  clay  soil,  and 
'  but  rarely  does  well  on  a  quick  sandy  soil. 


ROTATION    OF    CROPS.  235 

"Whichever  of  the  crops  may  be  selected,  the  treatment  or 
*'  the  land  after  harvest  is  the  same.  The  stubble  being  raked 
"  clean  as  possible  from  all  the  grain  ;  if  the  land  is  not  clear  of 
"  weeds  plow  it,  shallow,  say  four  inches,  at  once,  and  harrow,  so 
"  as  to  insure  the  growth  of  all  the  grain  left  on  the  ground,  and 
"  the  bringing  to  the  surface  the  roots  of  weeds.  At  this  season 
"  of  the  year  the  sun  is  usually  hot  and  the  weather  dry  ;  and  six 
"  weeks  of  summer  fallowing  in  August  and  the  forepart  of  Sep- 
"  tember,  properly  managed,  will  do  much  toward  freeing  the 
"  land  from  even  couch  (quick)  grass,  especially  if  the  roots  are 
"  gathered  by  a  strong  steel-toothed  horse- rake,  and  then  drawn 
"  off  the  field  and  destroyed. 

"  If  the  land  is  free  from  foul  stuff,  the  best  course  is  to  turn 
"  on  the  stubble  sheep  or  young  cattle,  and  let  them  pick  ofF 
"  what  they  can,  until  near  the  time  for  sowing  wheat,  and  then 
"  plow  once  perfectly,  and  harrow  for  the  next  crop,  which  will 
"  be  wheat. 

'-'-Fifth.  Tear. — In  the  fall  of  the  fourth  year  wheat  was  sown, 
"  and  with  it,  by  a  device  connected  with  the  drill,  six  quarts  of 
"  timothy-seed.  In  the  spring  of  the  fifth  year  red  clover  is  to  be 
"  sown.  When  the  wheat  is  harvested,  the  ground  should  be  all 
"  covered  with  clover  and  timothy,  which  are  to  make  the 
"  meadow  or  hay  crop  of  the  first  year  of  the  next  rotation. 

"  This  is  the  first  five-year  rotation  as  practiced  by  the  best 
"  farmers  of  my  acquaintance  when  no  circumstances  cause  a 
"  modification — ^such,  tor  instance,  as  the  failure  of  clover-seed  to 
"  take  and  grow  well,  or,  perhaps,  an  uncommon  demand  in  the 
*■'  market  for  some  one  crop. 

"  Our  farmers  expect,  as  the  proceeds  of  this  five-year  rotation, 
"  from  each  acre  two  tons  of  hay,  three  bushels  of  clover-seed, 
"  the  pasturage  of  one  cow  for  a  season,  fifty  bushels  of  corn, 
"  and  the  forage  produced  by  the  corn  crop,  forty  bushels  of 
"  barley,  or  fifty  bushels  of  oats,  as  the  case  may  be,  and  twenty 
"  to  twenty-five  bushels  of  wheat. 

"  If  the  ground  has  previously  been  well  tilled,  and  is  not 
"  infested  with  foul  weeds,  each  grain  crop  is  raised  by  one  plow- 


236  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"  ing.  Land  free  from  stone  and  all  other  obstructions,  and  that 
"  has  been  previously  properly  managed,  can  be  pertectly  cul- 
"  ti\  ated  by  one  plowing,  that  is,  the  furrow  can  be  turned  over 
"  and  pulverized,  if  the  right  plow  is  used,  and  the  right  man  has 
"  the  holding  ot  it. 

"  MODIFICATIONS    OF    OUR    ROl  ATIONS. 

"To  carry  out  strictly  the  five-year  rotation,  we  have  to  sup- 
*■*■  pose  the  farm  to  be  divided  into  h\  e  equal  parts,  and  that  the 
*'  owner  will  find  it  to  his  interest  to  raise  crops  in  just  the  pro- 
"  portion  laid  down.  As  has  been  already  suggested,  for  various 
"  reasons,  this  is  not  always  so,  and  thus  modifications  are  from 
"  year  to  year  made.      Some  of  them  will  now  be  stated. 

'■'■  The  yield  of  grass  the  first  year  after  the  wheat  has  been 
"  taken  off  is  much  greater  than  it  is  the  second  year  -,  that  is,  a 
"  larger  crop  of  hay  can  be  cut  the  first  year  •,  there  is  more 
"  clover  this  year  than  afterward.  The  convenience  of  the 
"  farmer  often  causes  him  to  pasture  the  first  year,  until  late  in 
"  August,  and  then  by  one  perfect  plowing  turn  all  the  clover 
"  that  he  can  and  sow  wheat.  By  just  this  process  we  have  pro- 
"  duced  crops  of  wheat  at  the  least  cost  per  bushel  of  any  we 
"  have  raised.  A  case  occurs  to  me  in  which  we  treated  a 
*'  twenty-acre  field  in  this  way,  and  got  thirtv-three  bushels  to 
"  the  acre.  This  was  the  cheapest  wheat  to  us  of  any  ever 
"  raised  on  the  farm. 

"The  next  year  this  land  went  into  barley,  followed  by  wheat, 
*'  when  it  was  again  seeded  to  grass. 

"  It  has,  in  some  few  instances,  happened  that  wheat  has  been 
*'  sown  on  wheat  stubble,  thus  taking  two  wheat  crops  in  suc- 
"  cession,  sowing  grass  seed  on  the  second  crop.  But  this  can 
"  be  justified  only  on  land  in  high  condition. 

"  Various  other  modifications,  that  will  readily  suggest  them- 
*■'■  selves  to  the  minds  of  grain-raising  farmers,  become  necessary 
"  or  very  convenient.  But  the  leading  point  is  constantly  kept 
**  in   view.      Fill  the  ground   with    clover-roots   and  the  roots  of 


ROTATION    OF    CROPS.  237 

"  grasses   as  often   as   practicable,  and   then    kill   them   with   the 
"  plow,  and  convert  their  decomposed  substances  into  grain, 

"  The  grass  crop  is  the  basis  of  all  improvement,  where  it  can 
''  be  made  to  grow  well. 


''  AT    WHAT  TIME    IN    THE    ROTATION    SHOULD    THE    BARN-YARD 
MANURE    BE    APPLIED  ? 

"  For  many  years  I  have  been  trying  to  learn  the  best  methods 
"  of  taking  care  of  and  using  barn-yard  manure,  and  now  I  am 
"  ready  to  confess  my  lack  of  knowledge  in  regard  to  this  impor- 
"  tant  matter. 

"  Farmers  that  raise  much  grain,  and  keep  a  proper  stock  of 
"  sheep  or  cows  to  consume  their  coarse  fodder,  or,  if  not  con- 
"  sume  it,  to  trample  it  under  foot  during  the  winter,  and  get  it  in 
"  condition  to  be  applied  to  the  land,  make  immense  quantities  of 
''  manure  that  costs  them  much  labor  to  handle,  and  it  is  always 
"a  matter  of  great  interest  to  them  to  learn  the  best  methods  of 
"  doing  this  work.  I  do  not  propose  to  enter  into  the  discussion 
"  of  this  topic  now,  but  will  state  the  practice  most  approved 
"  here. 

"  Sheep  are  the  best  farm  stock  to  manufacture  manure. 
"  Properly  wintered,  under  sheds  that  can  be  closed  against 
*'  storms,  having  small  yards  connected  with  them,  sheep  will 
"  trample  much  straw  under  foot,  and  will  dispose  in  like  manner 
"  of  the  coarser  part  of  the  corn-stalks  so  well,  that  twice  or 
"  three  times  during  the  winter  the  manure  can  be  drawn  on 
"  sleds  from  the  sheds  and  yards,  and  spread  on  the  snow  that 
"  then  covers  the  pastures  and  ground  designed  for  the  next  year's 
"  crop  of  corn.  The  manure  must  be  quite  fine  to  justify  its 
"  being;  put  on  the  ground  designed  for  corn.  Spread  on  pastures, 
"  a  bad  flavor  is  given  to  the  grass  next  vear  ;  but,  aside  from  this 
"  objection,  I  know  of  no  place  where  it  does  so  much  good.  A 
"  pasture  treated  in  the  winter  to  raw  unfermented  manure  will 
"  be  so  strong  in  grass,  and  the  soil  will  become  so  rich,  that, 
'*  whether  plowed  the  next  summer  for  wheat,  or  after  being  one 


238  UANDl'-BOOK    OF   HUSBANDRY. 

"  year  grazed,  and  then  put  into  corn,  the  maximum  yield 
"  may  be  reasonably  expected.  This  winter  manuring  costs  the 
"  least  of  all  methods,  and  probably  saves  the  most  of  the  value 
'^  of  the  manure  of  any  known  to  me. 

"  But  the  barn-yards  of  a  productive  grain  farm  will  be  covered 
"  in  the  spring  a  foot  or  two  deep  with  the  butts  of  corn-stalks, 
'•'•  straw,  and  manure  from  cows,  young  cattle,  etc.,  that  will  be 
"  so  coarse  that  it  requires  reducing  in  bulk  bv  fermentation. 
"  This  matter  is  pitched  into  large  piles  in  the  yard,  from  time  to 
"  time  sprinkled  with  gvpsum,  and  about  the  first  of  July  the 
"  sides  of  the  piles  cut  down  and  cast  on  the  top,  to  promote  the 
"  decay  of  the  part  of  the  manure  that  has  been  so  exposed  to  the 
"  air  that  fermentation  has  been  very  slight. 

"  Thus  treated,  this  coarse  manure  will  be  so  reduced  that  by  the 
"  time  wheat  is  to  be  sown  in  the  fall  it  can  be  drawn  out  and 
"  scattered  on  the  top  of  the  wheat  ground  immediately  before 
"  harrowing  and  drilling  in  the  seed.  Selecting  that  part  of  the 
"  wheat  ground  that  most  requires  help,  we  top-dress  it  with  this 
"  rotted  manure,  not  mixing  it  with  the  soil  more  than  the  harrow 
*'  and  drill  buries  it,  with  a  very  slight  covering. 

"  This  last-described  method  of  handling  barn-yard  manure  is 
"  vastly  more  expensive  than  the  one  first  given  -,  but,  all  things 
"  considered,  I  know  of  no  better  way  to  take  care  of  the  coarser 
*'  parts  of  it. 

"  In  this  very  summary  statement  of  our  methods  of  using 
*' barn-vard  manure,  I  have  avoided  arguing  the  controverted 
''points  that  are  involved — some  of  them  may  come  up  for  con- 
"  sideration  at  a  future  time, 

"  ROTATION  OF    CROPS    INVOLVES    MIXED   AGRICULTURE. 

"  There  are  sections  of  country  where  rotation  of  crops  and  a 
"  system  of  mixed  agriculture  is  impracticable.  And  there  are 
"districts  where  the  plow  cannot  be  used  at  all.  But  a  very 
"  large  proportion  of  this  country  is  in  all  respects  well  adapted 
"to  the  production  of  a  great  variety  of  crops,  and  to  the  sup- 
"  port,  at  the  same  time,  of  large  flocks  of  sheep,  or  herds  of  cattle. 


ROTATION    OF    CROPS.  239 

"  Wherever  mixed  agriculture  is  practicable,  it  results  in  vastly 
"  increasing  the  grand  total  of  the  yield  of  the  fruits  of  the  earth. 

"  That  strange  tendency  of  the  American  mind  to  run  to 
''  extremes  in  every  thing  appears  among  the  farmers  as  strongly  as 
"  anywhere  else.  If  fine  wool  happens  to  be  profitable  to  raise,  a 
'*  fever  takes  hold  of  the  owners  of  flocks,  which  soon  becomes  a 
"  mania.  Individuals  become  noted  as  breeders.  Some  fancy 
"  name  becomes  famous,  and  the  sheep  of  certain  men  rise  in  price, 
*'  first  to  hundreds,  soon  to  thousands  of  dollars  each,  until  a  single 
''animal  has  been  sold  for  the  price  of  a  farm  adequate  to  the  sup- 
"  port,  when  managed  bv  a  rational  man,  of  an  ordinarv  family. 

'■'■  This  sheep  fever  in  due  time  results  in  over-production  of  wool  ; 
'■'■  low  prices  follow  ;  men  begin  to  rub  their  eves,  as  though  waking 
*'  from  some  strange  dream,  and  the  bubble  bursts.  A  reaction 
*'  follows  ;  good  sheep  are  slaughtered  bv  the  thousand,  saving  only 
'■'■  their  pelts  and  tallow,  and  the  business  of  wool-raising,  as  a  re^u- 
"  lar  branch  of  farming,  is  as  unduly  depressed  as  at  the  time  of  the 
"popular  insanity  it  was  unduly  elevated. 

"  A  tew  men  have  made  money  ;  manv  men  ha\e  lost  money  ; 
*'  but  there  has  been  one  real  gain.  Sheep  have  been  greatly 
"  improved,  and  the  knowledge  of  the  best  manner  of  managing 
"  flocks  has  been  very  much  extended. 

"  FARM      STOCK,      WITH      GRAIN-RAISING,    IS      NECESSARILY     CON- 
NECTED   WITH    A    PROPER    ROTATION. 

"  In  the  rotation  suggested  in  this  paper,  one-fifth  of  the  farm 
"  is  pasture,  besides  the  pasturage  derived  in  the  early  spring  from 
*'  ground  that  is  to  be  plowed  for  corn,  and  that  which  is  derived 
"  from  the  fields  from  which  wheat  has  been  harvested.  The 
*'  wheat  stubbles  will,  without  injuring  the  grass,  give  a  large 
"  amount  of  pasture — at  a  time  when  usuallv  most  desired — that 
"  will  be  fresh,  and  much  liked  bv  the  farm  stock. 

"  A  grain  farm,  under  a  proper  rotation,  wmII  carrv  through  the 

"  summer   a   large  stock,  and    produce  none  the  less  grain,  if  we 

"  take  a  period  of,  sav  ten  years,  into  account.     This  farm  stock, 

"  in  the  winter,  will  work  the  corn-stalks  and  straw  into  manure. 
16 


240  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

*"'  In  fact,  the  stock  is  a  necessity  to  the  grain  farmer  in  the 
*'  winter.  Before  the  grain-raisers  of  central  and  western  New 
"  York  understood  this  thing,  the  straw  from  their  grain  was  a 
*'  great  incumbrance,  and  much  of  it  was  burned  up  immediately 
*'  after  the  grain  was  thrashed,  in  the  fields  where  it  grew. 

"  To  sum  this  matter  up,  a  proper  farm  stock,  over  and  above 
**  the  teams,  cows,  etc.,  necessary  to  meet  the  wants  of  the  farm, 
*'  can  be  supported  on  a  grain  farm  with  very  little  cost,  except 
*'  the  care  and  attention  required. 

"  It  may  be  said  that  the  straw,  corn-stalks,  etc.,  might  be  sold 
**  for  money.  Near  large  towns  this  may  be  true,  but  it  is  not 
*'  true  away  from  such  markets.  But  it  should  not  be  sold  off  the 
*'  farm  unless  the  owner  of  the  farm  intends  to  sell  the  soil  within 
''  a  few  years.  The  barn-vard  manure  made  by  cattle  and  sheep, 
"by  trampling  this  coarse  forage  under  foot,  is  an  important 
**  matter  in  that  system  that  looks  to  making  a  farm  self-sustaining 
''and  self-improving. 

"  A  well-managed  grain  farm  should  sell  grain,  clover-seed, 
"  meat,  wool,  cheese,  and  butter — but  not  hay,  corn-stalks,  or 
"  straw,  until  it  has  become  so  fertile  by  its  own  self-sustaining 
'*  and  creative  powers,  that  too  much  straw  is  produced  in  the 
"grain  crops.  Then,  perhaps,  it  will  do  to  sell  a  little  hay — 
"  when  it  brings  a  large  price. 

"  Such  persons  as  have  done  me  the  honor  of  reading  my  com- 
"  munications  lately  published  in  The  Tribune,  will  have  learned 
"  that  I  believe  in  a  farm  sustaining  itself,  and  that  with  very 
*'  little  aid  from  outside,  it  should  be,  by  judicious  cultivation, 
"  carried  to  the  very  highest  point  of  production  that  the  climate 
"  will  allow.  I  fully  recognize  the  inherent  differences  in  soils, 
"and  their  adaptability  to  special  crops,  and  I  do  not  say  that  the 
"  exact  methods  I  have  pointed  out  are  applicable  everywhere. 
"  But  I  have  no  sympathy  whatever  with  that  school  of  writers 
'*  who  appear  to  think  that  the  world  is  going  to  ruin  by  reason 
"of  the  deterioration  of  the  farming  lands. 

"  There  is  a  period  in  new  countries  in  which  bad  tarming  is 
*'  almost    universal  j    then    comes   the  necessity   of  reform,  and 


ROTATION    OF    CROPS.  241 

"  reform  becomes  the  order  of  the  day.  So  far  as  I  know,  farm- 
*■"  ing  is  now  improving  in  all  the  older  sections  of  the  country, 
"  except,  perhaps,  in  the  neighborhood  of  cities.  The  temptation 
"  to  raise  hay  and  sell  it  at  high  prices,  in  a  great  city,  leads  to  the 
"  worst  farming  that  has  come  under  my  notice.  Whenever  I 
"  hear  a  farmer  say  that  he  pays  fifty  or  sixty  dollars  an  acre  for 
"  manure  to  put  on  his  fields,  and  then  learn  that  this  manure  is 
"  mostly  straw  that  has  become  stained  a  little  in  some  city  stable, 
"  fifty  or  more  miles  from  where  it  is  applied  as  manure,  I  am 
"  quite  apt  to  tell  that  farmer  that  his  money  has  been  badly  laid 
"  out,  and  that,  in  a  proper  system  of  mixed  husbandry,  and  with 
"a  proper  rotation  of  crops,  he  would  have  saved  this  expense." 


CHAPTER     X 


GRAIN    CROPS. 


The  principal  grain  crops  of  America  are  Indian  Corn,  Wheat, 
Rye,  Oats,  Barlev,  and  Buckwheat.  The  chief  of  these  is  the 
king  of  the  cereals, 

INDIAN    CORN. 

This  is  by  far  the  most  important  product  of  American  agri- 
culture, and  it  feeds  more  human  beings  than  anv  other  grain 
except  rice.  It  takes,  in  a  great  measure,  the  place  of  the  turnip 
crop  of  England,  and,  both  as  a  source  of  food  and  as  a  means  for 
placing  the  soil  in  a  good  condition  for  the  culti\ation  of  other 
crops,  it  is  the  very  backbone  of  our  svstem  of  farming. 

Its  range  of  cultivation  is  almost  co-extensive  with  the  bounda- 
ries of  the  nation,  as  it  grows  to  perfection  from  the  great  lakes  to 
the  Gulf  of  Mexico. 

The  varieties  of  corn  are  numerous.  In  fact,  they  are  con- 
stantly increasing  in  consequence  of  the  ease  with  which  the  plant 
hybridizes  ; — two  sorts  growing  in  the  same  field  usually  produ- 
cing many  crosses,  having  each  more  or  less  of  the  qualities  of  one 
or  the  other  of  the  original  sorts.  There  seems  to  be  two  dis- 
tinct classes  of  corn,  one  peculiar  to  the  North,  and  the  other  to 
the  South. 

The  Northern  corn,  of  which  the  Dutton  is  the  type,  has  a 
round,  smooth  seed,  which  is  entirely  coated  with  a  hard,  horny 
substance.  This  contains  less  starch  and  more  oil  and  gluten  than 
does  the  Southern,  or  gourd-seed  corn,  in  which  the  starch  occu- 
pies the  center  of  the  grain  quite  to*its  upper  end  ; — the  oil  and 


GRAIN    CROPS.  243 

gluten  which  exist  in  smaller  proportion  than  in  Northern  corn, 
being  confined  mainly  to  the  sides  of  the  grain.  As  the  grain  ot 
this  variety  ripens,  and  the  starch  shrinks,  the  top  of  the  kernel 
falls  in,  producing  a  dent  or  depression. 

As  a  general  principle,  it  may  be  stated  that  the  Southern  corn 
is  less  nutritious  than  the  Northern  varieties. 

CULTIVATION. 

Corn  delights  in  a  soil  filled  with  decaying  organic  matter  of 
both  animal  and  vegetable  origin.  It  also  requires  for  its  perfect 
growth  that  the  soil  be  warm^  sufficiently  moht^  loose  In  its  texture^ 
and,  above  all,  not  too  wet. 

As  the  plant  is  peculiarly  suited  to  tropical  climates, — and 
requires,  at  some  time  during  its  growth,  an  intense  heat, — it 
should  not  be  planted  until  all  danger  of  frost  has  passed,  nor 
until  the  soil  has  become  thoroughly  warmed.  In  the  latitude  of 
New  York  the  seed  should  not  be  put  in  before  the  tenth  of  May., 
and, — on  land  that  is  perfectly  adapted  for  its  growth, — it  is  as 
well  to  defer  planting  until  early  in  June.  Put  in  at  this  time,  the 
seed  will  germinate  very  rai)idly,  and  the  growth  will  proceed 
without  the  check  that  often  results  from  the  cold  storms  of  May. 
It  takes  longer  to  recover  from  a  serious  checking  of  the  growth 
than  to  make  a  good  growth  later  in  the  season.  The  chief 
advantages  of  carlv  planting  are,  that  the  work  is  out  of  the  way, 
and  that,  in  exceptional  seasons,  the  crop  will  arrive  a  ievf  days 
earlier  at  maturity.  This  is  not  always, — perhaps  not  generally 
— the  case,  and  in  this  latitude  it  is  considered  quite  safe  to  post- 
pone planting  until  June. 

The  moisture  that  the  soil  requires  is  rather  the  natural  damp- 
ness of  freshly-stirred  land  than  the  drenching  wet  of  heavy  rains. 
If  the  soil  is  loose  and  friable,  so  that  the  air  can  circulate  among 
its  cooler  shaded  particles,  enough  water  will  be  condensed  from 
this  air  to  fully  supply  the  crop,  and  if  corn,  growing  on  good  land, 
could  be  well  hoed  every  day,  it  would  not  require  a  single  drop 
of  rain  during  the  whole  period  of  its  growth.  On  the  other 
hand,  if  the  soil  is  stiff  and  compact,  and  i.s  not  hoed  or  cultivated 


244  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

more  than  two  or  three  times  during  the  season,  it  will  suffer 
materially  for  want  of  water,  even  though  the  soil  is  wet  one-half 
the  time  ; — because  during  the  other  half,  it  will  be  baked  dry  and 
hard,  excluding  the  air  by  whose  circulation  alone,  in  time  of 
drought,  can  a  sufficient  supply  of  water  be  deposited  in  the  soil. 

Looseness  of  texture  in  the  soil  is  important,  not  only  as  affording 
access  to  air,  but  also  because  it  allows  of  the  free  and  wide- 
spread ramification  of  the  smaller  feeding  roots.  These  would 
not  penetrate  a  solid  clod  of  even  the  richest  earth,  while,  if  the 
same  clod  were  finely  pulverized,  e\  ery  part  of  it  would  be  pene- 
trated by  corn  roots,  and  the  plant  food  contained  in  it  would 
become  available.  Therefore,  it  is  best  that  the  soil  should  be  of 
a  sort  not  apt  to  bake,  and  that  it  should  be  made  as  fine  as  possi- 
ble before  planting,  and  kept  as  fine  as  possible  as  long  as  the  size 
of  the  crop  will  allow  it  to  be  worked. 

Drainage  is  more  important  than  any  other  item  in  the  prepara- 
tion of  land  for  corn,  unless  the  soil  is  already  naturally  drained. 
Stagnant  water  in  the  soil — and  upon  it — is  absolutely  fatal  to  suc- 
cess, and  whatever  care  we  may  take  might  almost  as  well  be  thrown 
away  if  we  allow  the  want  of  proper  under-draining  to  keep  the 
soil  sometimes  too  cold,  sometimes  too  dry,  and  always  too  stiff 
and  compact.  That  the  want  of  draining  will  produce  all  of  these 
unfavorable  conditions,  no  one  need  be  told  who  has  had  an 
opportunity  to  see  how  they  all  gradually  vanish  when  wet  land  is 
thoroughly  under-drained. 

The  manner  in  which  the  corn  crop  of  much  of  our  best  corn- 
growing  region  has  been  this  year  (1869)  destroyed  by  excessive 
ztv/,  the  farmers  of  Central  Illinois  do  not  need  to  be  told. 

In  view  of  the  foregoing  principles,  I  submit  the  following  as 
a  good  course  to  pursue  in  the  commencement  of  a  rotation,  of 
which  corn  is  the  first  crop. 

(Other  plans  maybe  as  good — under  certain  circumstances  they 
may  be  even  better — but,  so  far  as  it  is  possible  to  lay  down  gen- 
eral rules,  I  believe  that  this  is,  on  the  whole,  the  best  ;  and  I  am 
confident  that  all  who   follow  it  will  be  satisfied  with   the  result.) 


GRAIN    CROPS.  245 

It  is  assumed  that  the  land  on  which  it  is  prepared  to  grow 
corn  next  year  is  now  in  grass,  and  that  the  hurry  of  the  summer 
work  is  past. 

1.  The  first  step  is  to  haul  out  manure — commencing  in 
August,  if  possible — and  spread  it  broadcast  on  the  land.  The 
more  heavily  it  is  applied  the  better, — for  CGr7i  cannot  be  over-fed. 
The  sooner  the  manure  is  spread  on  the  land,  after  it  has  been 
dropped,  the  better — for  in  no  other  place  is  it  subjected  to  so 
little  loss,  and  its  effect,  early  in  the  fall,  or  in  the  spring,  com- 
mences from  the  moment  of  its  application.  I  am  satisfied  that 
the  best  practice  will  be  to  use  as  much  manure  as  can  possibly 
be  spared,  and  to  get  it  on  the  land  as  early  as  practicable  after 
the  hay  is  removed. 

It  stimulates  the  growth  of  a  luxuriant  sod,  which  it  also  enriches 
by  its  own  decomposition;  and  this  sod,  with  its  roots  immensely 
increased  in  number,  in  size,  and  in  succulence,  is  the  best  supply 
of  food  for  corn  that  it  is  possible  to  secure.  The  grass  may  be 
eaten  ofl:'  in  both  fall  and  spring,  but  not  too  closely,  and  espe- 
cially the  spring  feeding  should  be  very  slight,  if  not  entirely  given 
up.  The  chief  object  is  to  secure  a  luxuriant  crop  o{  roots.  So 
early  in  the  season  the  grass  does  not  amount  to  much  as  a  green 
crop,  but  the  extent  to  which  the  growth  of  the  roots  may  be 
increased  is  very  great,  and  these — together  with  the  constit- 
uents of  the  manure  absorbed  by  the  soil  are  of  the  utmost  im- 
portance. 

2.  A  few  days  before  it  is  intended  to  plant,  (the  fewer  the 
better,)  with  ample  teams,  and  implements  in  good  order,  the  land 
should  be  plowed  to  a  depth  of  not  less  x.h?iX\  four  inches,  and  not 
more  than  seven  inches — the  object  being  to  keep  the  mass  of 
roots  near  to  the  surface,  only  turning  up  enough  earth  to  secure 
good  "covering."  The  furrow  should  be  laid  flat,  and  no  grass 
should  be  allowed  to  show  on  the  surface.  The  surface  plow 
should  be  followed  by  a  subsoil  plow,  drawn  by  a  good  team  and 
loosening  the  bottom  of  the  furrow  as  deeply  as  possible, — for, 
although  we  ought  to  keep  the  organic  matter  in  the  soil  near  to 
the  surface,  we  should  at  the  same  time  open  a  passage  by  which 


246  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

the   deeper   roots  of  the   corn    can   go  down  below  the  reach  of 
drought. 

3.  As  soon  as  the  plowing  is  finished,  the  land  should  be  heavily 
rolled  and  dressed  with  not  less  than  200  lbs.  of  Peruvian  guano, 
300  lbs.  of  cotton-seed  meal,  or  some  equally  stimulating  manure, 
and  thoroughly  harrowed — preferably  with  Shares  harrow.  This 
implement  should  run  lengthwise  over  the  furrows,  and  the  op- 
eration should  be  continued  until  a  fine  covering  not  less  than  two 
inches  deep  is  secured. 

4.  Before  the  soil  has  had  time  to  become  dry,  it  should  be 
marked  out  and  planted,  either  in  '^  drills  "  or  in  "  hills."  If  the 
latter  plan  is  adopted,  it  will  be  necessary  to  wait  until  the  whole 
field  is  made  ready,  so  that  it  may  be  marked  both  ways.  If  the 
planting  is  in  drills,  it  maybe  commenced  as  soon  as  a  single  land 
— or  a  few  furrows  can  be  harrowed.  The  more  rapidly  the 
planting  can  be  made  to  follow  the  plowing,  the  less  time  will  be 
allowed  for  the  starting  of  weeds. 

The  hill  system  of  planting,  as  it  allows  the  crop  to  be  culti- 
vated by  horse-power,  in  both  directions,  is  much  cheaper,  and  in 
the  absence  of  an  abundant  supply  of  labor,  it  is  undoubtedly  the 
best ;  but  if  the  help  can  be  procured  for  the  extra  work  of  plant- 
ing in  drills,  and  for  the  greater  amount  of  hoeing  that  will  be 
necessary  when  the  cultivator  can  be  worked  in  but  one  direction, 
the  extra  production  of  grain, — and  especially  of  fodder — wilj 
amply  repay  it.  In  drill  planting,  it  will  be  easier  (and  equally 
good)  to  drop  three  seeds  in  a  place,  at  intervals  of  two  feet,  than 
to  drop  single  seeds  at  intervals  of  eight  inches,  and  the  hoeing 
of  the  crop  will  take  much  less  time. 

The  seed  should  not  be  covered  more  than  one  inch  deep. 
This  will  be  enough  to  protect  it  against  too  much  drying,  and  it 
is  important  that  it  be  within  the  influence  of  the  sun's  heat. 
After  the  planting  is  finished,  it  will  be  well  to  give  the  whole 
field  a  light  rolling  to  compact  the  earth  about  the  seed,  and  to 
make  the  surface  so  even  as  to  render  the  subsequent  work  of 
cultivation  lighter. 

As  soon  as  the  rows  can  be  distinctly  seen,  the  work  of  culti- 


GRAIN    CROPS.  247 

vation  should  be  commenced.  It  is  easier  to  prevent  the  growth 
of  weeds  than  to  kill  them  after  they  are  grown.  If  the  corn  is 
planted  in  "  hills  "  the  horse  cultivator  may  be  run  both  ways,  and 
thus  reduce  the  handwork  to  the  lowest  point.  If  in  "  drills," 
the  hoeing  should  be  done  with  great  care — all  grass  and  weeds 
being  thoroughly  cleaned  out  from  the  rows.  This  first  hoeing 
should  be  finished  when  the  crop  is  not  more  than  six  inches 
high,  and  the  second  cultivation  should  be  given  before  weeds 
have  time  to  make  any  considerable  headway.  A  third  hoeing, 
which  is  erroneously  neglected  in  many  instances,  should  be  com- 
pleted before  the  crop  is  so  large  as  to  be  injured  by  the  working 
of  the  horse,  and  the  whiffletree  used  at  this  time  should  be  as 
short  as  possible. 

It  is  now  pretty  well  settled  that  "  hilling  "  corn  is  an  injurious 
practice.  It  undoubtedly  had  its  origin  in  the  custom  of  the 
Indians,  who  had  no  other  means  of  giving  the  plant  a  bed  of  fine 
soil  to  grow  in  than  by  scraping  it  from  the  surface  with  their 
hoes,  and  piling  it  up  about  the  stems.  Probably  it  was  continued 
longer  than  it  otherwise  would  have  been,  from  the  belief  that  the 
"  brace  shoots  "  that  are  thrown  out  above  the  soil  are  roots^ — 
which  they  are  not.  They  are  intended  to  hold  the  stalk  in  its 
position,  and  they  do  this  much  more  thoroughly  than  any  system 
of  hilling  can  possibly  do,  and  by  being  covered  with  earth  they 
lose  their  power  to  act  as  braces. 

A  little  earth  should  be  drawn  about  the  stem  of  the  plant  at 
the  first  hoeing, — raising  the  soil,  say  an  inch  or  so, — as  there  is 
danger  that  a  little  earth  will  be  drawn  away  by  the  cultivator  at 
the  second  working,  and  this  would  leave  the  true  roots  too  little 
protected  against  the  drying  influence  of  sun  and  wind.  If  the 
soil  is  thoroughly  loose  and  clean  all  about  and  between  the 
plants  when  they  are  about  two  feet  high,  the  crop  should  be 
"laid  by"  until  harvest.  The  less  it  is  disturbed  after  this  the 
better  it  will  be.  If  it  is  desired  to  raise  turnips  on  the  land,  they 
should  be  sown  broadcast  after  the  last  hoeing,  before  the  earth  is 
beaten  down  by  rain.  One  pound  of  turnip-seed  per  acre  is  an 
ample  allowance,  and  the  best  way  to  sow  it  is  with  a  "  French  " 


248  HANDY -BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

mustard  jar,  or  a  broad-mouthed  bottle,  with  a  tin  cover  pierced 
with  large  holes.  The  jar  should  not  be  more  than  half  full,  and 
a  little  practice  will  soon  indicate  the  extent  to  which  the  holes 
should  be  covered  by  the  fingers  as  the  seed  is  flirted  out  in  walk- 
ing across  the  field. 

The  turnip  seed, — or  enough  of  it, — will  be  planted  by  the  first 
rain,  and  the  plants  will  be  well  established  bv  the  time  the  corn 
is  cut  up,  after  which  they  will  make  fair-sized  roots.  The 
Strap  Leaf  Red  Top  is  the  best  American  variety  for  this  use. 

Whether  it  is  wise  to  raise  this  stolen  crop  of  turnips  depends 
on  the  circumstances  of  the  case.  They  will,  if  properly  man- 
aged (properly  planted,  that  is),  yield  an  abundant  supply  of  valu- 
able food  for  the  early  winter,  but  they  are  so  hard  upon  the  land 
that  they  will  probably  cost  all  they  will  be  worth.  If  roots  can 
be  as  well  grown  on  ground  of  their  own,  the  corn-field  should 
not  be  charged  with  their  production, — for  they  will  inevitably  use 
up  manure  that  should  remain  for  the  second  crop  of  the  rotation. 

Harvesting. — Corn  should  never  be  "topped."  The  little  that 
will  be  gained  in  fodder,  will  be  more  than  lost  in  the  grain,  which 
in  its  maturing  assimilates  some  of  the  contents  of  the  juices  of  the 
whole  plant, — above  as  well  as  below. 

As  soon  as  the  kernels  are  glazed, — as  soon  as  the  thumb  nail 
cannot  be  easily  pressed  through  its  skin, — the  stalks  should  be 
cut  up  near  the  ground,  and  bound  in  "  stooks  "  to  cure.  The 
earlier  it  is  so  cut  the  better  will  be  the  fodder,  and  after  the 
glazing  is  complete  the  grain  will  mature  as  rapidly  and  as  per- 
fectly on  the  severed  stalk  as  though  it  was  still  in  communication 
with  the  root. 

Late  in  the  fall  the  cars  should  be  husked  and  stored  in  cribs 
and  the  stalks  tied  in  bundles  for  stacking.  They  will  keep  much 
better  if  the  stacks  are  thatched  with  rye  straw — to  exclude  rain  ; 
and  in  no  case  should  the  diameter  of  the  stack  be  more  than 
twice  the  length  of  the  bundles  ; — that  is,  it  should  be  built  around 
a  pole,  and  each  bundle  should  reach  from  this  to  the  outside 
of  the  stack.      The  tops  should   lie  toward  the  center,  and  the 


GRAIN    CROPS. 


249 


butts  outward.  If  it  is  attempted  to  store  corn-stalks  in  barns 
or  in  very  large  stacks,  they  will  almost  invariably  decay,  owing 
to  the  large  amount  of  water  they  contain,  which  it  is  impos- 
sible to  dry  out  by  any  amount  of  exposure. 

Storing  the  graiti. — Corn  cribs  are  such  a  simple  affair  that 
it  would  not  have  occurred  to  me  at  all  to  describe  their  con- 
struction did  I  not  frequently  receive  applications  for  plans  by 
which  to  erect  them.  The  fundamental  principle  for  the 
arrangement  of  the  crib  is  to  give  the  freest  possible  admission 
to  air,  and  to  keep  out  rats  and  mice.  Of  course  there  are 
many  considerations  of  convenience,  which  it  is  best  to  study, 
and  the  mode  of  construction  must  depend  very  much  on  the 
amount  of  grain  to  be  stored. 

For  a  Northern  farm,  where  from  500  to  1,000  bushels  of 
shelled  corn  are  to  be  kept,  (double  that  bulk  of  ears,)  the  plan 
shown    in   Fig.    66   will   be    found  effective.      It  is   10  feet  high 

Fig.  66. 


at  the  sills,  12  feet  wide,  the  plate  7  feet  high  from  the  floor 
to  the  eaves,  and  as  long  as  the  requirements  of  the  farm  make 
necessary.  It  has  a  passage-way  4  feet  wide  from  the  door  at 
the  end  to  within"  4  feet  of  the  rear  end  where  there  is  a  bin 


250 


HANPT-BOOK    OF    UUSBANDRT. 


4  feet  square  for  shelled  corn.  The  plan  of  the  floor  is  shown 
in  Fig.  67.  The  building  should  stand  on  posts  2i  feet  above 
the  ground,  these  being  capped  b\-  inverted  tins  made  in  the 
shape  of  ordinary   milk-pans,  but  without    the  wire  in  the  rim. 

Fig.    67. 


— . .^ 

BIN    FOR    EARS 

BIN 

For  Shelled 

CORN 

BIN    FOR   EARS 

— which,  for  this  purpose,  is  unnecessary.  This  arrangement 
will  effectuallv  prevent  the  access  of  rats, — cspeciallv  if  the 
approach  to  the  doorway  is  an  iron  stirrup  or  wagon  step  let 
down  from  the  sill  and  not  coming  nearer  than  within  18  inches 
of  the  ground. 

The  sides  of  the  crib  should  be  made  of  vertical  slats  not  more 
than  three  inches  wide,  and  placed  at  intervals  of  at  least  one  inch 
so  as  to  admit  of  a  free  circulation  of  air ;  for  the  same  reason  the 
partitions  between  the  passage  way,  in  the  middle  of  the  crib  and 
the  bins,  and  the  floor  under  the  bins,  should  be  made  of  slats. 
The  entrances  from  the  passage  way  to  the  bins,  on  either  side, 
should  be  only  wide  enough  to  admit  of  the  passing  of  baskets,  and 
they  may  be  closed,  as  the  corn  is  put  in,  by  loose  boards  cut  to 
fit  a  groove,  into  which  they  are  dropped  from  the  top.  The 
roof  should  project  enough  to  shed  water  clear  of  the  sides,  which, 
for  further  protection  against  wet,  have  a  pitch  outward  of  one 
foot  on  each  side. 

In  such  a  crib,  the  bins  will  be  3  feet  wide  at  the  bottom,  4 
feet  at  the  top  (a  mean  width  of  ^j  ^'^^O?  ^"'^  7  ^^^^  ^'g'^i  which 
will  give  a  section  of  24!  square  feet.  Six  and  a  half  (6^)  feet  in 
length  of  such  a  bin  will  hold  100  bushels  of  ears — round  measure  ; 
about  1,000  bushels  being  held  by  both  sides  of  a  crib  30  feet 
lone. 


GRAIN    CROPS.  251 


WHEAT. 


In  writing  about  the  cultivation  of  wheat,  it  is  but  just  for  me 
to  say  that  I  never  raised  a  bushel  of  wheat  in  my  life,  and  that 
what  I  have  to  say  on  the  subject  is  the  purest  "  book-farming  ;" 
it  is  the  result  of  study  only,  and  is,  of  course,  not  to  be  con- 
sidered so  reliable  as  are  those  parts  of  this  book  which  relate  to 
matters  in  which  I  have  had  the  advantage  of  personal  experience. 

The  production  of  wheat  seems,  from  the  custom  of  the  whole 
world,  to  belong,  properly,  to  the  two  extremes  of  farming,  the 
most  careless  and  inconsiderate,  and  the  most  complete  and 
well  directed.  In  the  wide  interval  that  covers  the  good,  bad, 
and  indifferent  agriculture  lying  between  these  two  extremes,  wheat 
is,  to  say  the  least  of  it,  not  the  most  important  crop. 

On  such  virgin  soils  as  are  better  adapted  to  the  growth  of 
wheat  than  of  corn,  there  is  no  crop  that  is  at  once  so  easily 
raised,  and  so  valuable  when  raised  ;  and  for  a  few  years  after  tKe 
first  breaking  up  (sometimes  for  many  years).  "  IVheat  is  the 
crop  every  time."  In  many  newly  settled  countries,  40  bushels 
of  wheat  to  the  acre  have  been  common,  and  fine  crops  have  been 
raised  for  successive  years  on  the  same  ground.  Sooner  or  later, 
however,  the  constant  cultivation  of  this  single  crop  begins  to  tell 
on  the  land,  and  the  yield  falls  off",  while  the  constitution  of  the 
plant  suff'ers  more  and  more  from  the  unfavorable  condition  of 
the  soil,  and  the  door  is  opened  for  the  attack  of  rust,  weevil,  and 
blight,  which  add  to  the  risk  and  help  to  reduce  the  result. 

The  best  wheat  lands,  treated  as  they  almost  invariably  (and 
necessarily)  are  by  new  settlers,  commence  at  40  bushels  per 
acre  ;  and  after  two  or  three  years  they  begin  to  grow  smaller  and 
smaller; — 35 — 30 — 20 — 15 — 12 — sometimes  even  8  bushels  per 
acre,  marking  the  steadily  decreasing  return  until  the  cultivation 
is  abandoned.  Usually,  every  reason  but  the  right  one  is  given 
for  this  decrease.  Climate,  the  removal  of  forests,  the  proximity 
of  the  sea,  or  of  mountains,  bugs,  blight,  "  bad  luck,"  winter  kill- 
ing, too  much  snow,  or  too  little — hundreds  of  plausible  reasons 
are  given  why  wheat  ceases  to  grow.      The  right  reason  is  almost 


252  II  ANDY -BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

never  hit  upon,  and  but  few  farmers  seem  to  know,  what  is  abso- 
lutely the  fact,  that  wlieat  ceases  to  grow  well,  to  produce  largely, 
and  to  withstand  the  vicissitudes  of  the  weather  and  the  attacks 
of  insects  when, — and  because, — those  parts  of  the  ashes  of  the 
grain  which  are  most  essential  to  its  perfection  are  no  longer 
supplied  by  the  soil  in  sufficient  quantities,  and  where,  from  inju- 
dicious plowing  and  harrowing,  (especially  from  plowing  in  wet 
weather),  the  land  has  been  brought  to  a  condition  unfavorable  to 
its  growth. 

Wheat  requires  for  its  best  growth  a  soil  that  is  compact  rather 
than  loose,  and  that  has  been  made  rich  by  previous  cultivation 
with  manure,  rather  than  by  the  application  of  hea\y  dressings  of 
fresh  manure  during  the  immediate  preparation  for  the  crop. 
Peruvian  guano,  nitrate  of  soda,  super-phosphate  of  lime, — any 
manure  in  tact  which  is  not  subject  toan  active  fermentation, — may, 
with  advantage,  be  harrowed  in  after  plowing,  or  applied  as  a  top 
dressing  after  planting  ;  but,  as  a  rule,  it  is  better  to  apply  the 
manure  to  a  previous  crop,  thus  giving  it  time  to  become  thoroughly 
decomposed  before  the  wheat  is  sown. 

The  universal  fertilixcr  for  wheat,  one  which  is  nearly  always 
accessible,  and  always  effective,  is  clovtr.  If  this  is  sown  in  the 
spring,  with  barley  or  oats,  allowed  to  grow  without  being  closely 
fed  off  in  the  fall,  top-dressed  with  plaster  the  second  spring,  cut 
once  in  June  and  again  in  August,  it  will  have  accumulated  in 
the  soil  an  enormous  quantity  of  long,  deeply-reaching  tap-roots, 
which, — with  the  lea\es  that  will  ha\e  fallen  during  growth, — 
constitute  the  best  manure  for  the  wheat  crop  ;  for,  in  addition  to 
the  fertilizing  effect  of  the  decaying  roots,  (rich  with  nutriment 
drawn  from  the  lower  soil  and  from  the  atmosphere,)  every  fiber 
that  reaches  down  into  the  subsoil,  opens  the  way  for  the  more 
delicate  roots  of  the  wheat  to  penetrate  in  search  of  food,  and,  by 
its  own  decomposition,  helps  to  prepare  the  soil  by  which  it  is 
immediately  surrounded  for  easy  assimilation. 

The  mechanical  effect  of  the  plowing  down  of  a  strong  clover 
sod,  is  very  great.       It  warms  the  soil,  and  makes  it  easy  for  the 


GRAIN    CROPS.  253 

wheat  roots  to  penetrate  every  part  of  it.  In  fact,  in  so  far 
as  it  is  a  question  of  manuring,  it  may  be  safely  assumed  that 
if  we  can  secure  a  good  growth  of  clover,  we  need  have  no 
uneasiness  about  the  wheat. 

While  compact  clay  soils  (what  are  known  as  strong  soils)  are 
the  best  for  wheat,  it  is  of  the  utmost  importance  that  they  be 
well  drained.  There  is  no  crop  that  is  grown  by  American 
farmers  that  is  more  impatient  of  undue  moisture  than  wheat 
is  ;  and  it  may  be  considered  that  every  argument  that  has  been 
advanced  in  support  of  tile-draining,  applies  with  redoubled 
force  to  the  draining  of  land  intended  for  wheat. 

There  is  now  an  active  discussion  going  on  throughout  the 
wheat-growing  world  concerning  the  quantity  of  seed  to  be  sown 
per  acre.  The  doctrines  of  heavy  seeding  and  light  seeding 
have  each  their  earnest  advocates,  but,  as  a  conclusion  drawn 
from  a  careful  reading  of  the  arguments  in  favor  of  each  planj 
I  think  the  weight  of  reason  and  the  weight  of  evidence  are 
both  on  the  side  of  the  thin  seeding.  One  bushel  of  wheat 
per  acre,  planted  so  carefully  as  to  give  a  fair  proportion  of 
seed  to  each  square  foot  of  land,  will  give  an  ample  stand, — 
completely  occupying  the  ground,  and  returning  the  largest  yield 
of  grain.  Of  course  the  seed  should  be  planted  at  a  uniform 
depth  and  with  great  regularity. 

It  has  recently  been  stated  that  a  field  of  wheat  planted  with 
selected  grain,  one  kernel  in  a  place,  rows  a  foot  apart  both 
ways,  yielded  159  bushels  per  acre.  This  is  a  marvelous  story, 
and  it  is  not  unlikely  that  the  land  on  which  the  experiment 
was  tried  was  in  an  exceptional  state  of  fertility,  nor  is  It 
impossible  that  the  truth  has  been  largely  overstated.  However, 
it  may  be  assumed  as  a  fact,  that  a  field  of  wheat  planted  as  above 
described,  with  the  largest  and  finest  kernels  only,  has  been  made 
to  produce  much  more  largely  than  has  ever  a  field  sown  in  the 
ordinary  way.  The  quantity  of  seed  used  in  this  planting  would  not 
be  more  than  four  quarts  ;  while  a  single  bushel,  evenly  sown 
over  the  whole  surface,  would  give  one  kernel  to  each  three  inches 


254  HANDY-BOOK    OF    nUSBANDRY. 

square  ;  in  the  case  under  consideration  there  was  only  one  kernel 
to  each  twelve  inches  square. 

The  quantity  of  seed  that  it  is  most  judicious  to  use  depends 
very  much  on  the  quality  of  the  land.  The  richer  the  land,  the 
larger  the  growth  of  the  individual  plant,  and,  consequently,  the 
fewer  the  plants  required  to  occupy  the  land.  \Vheat  multiplies 
itself  very  largely,  bv  sprouting  at  the  crown  ;  and  under  the  best 
circumstances,  a  single  seed  may  result  in  a  stool  of  from  fifty  to 
seventy  shoots,  each  bearing  a  perfect  head  of  well-filled  grain. 
This  process  of  multiplication  is  called  "  tillering."  It  can  only 
take  place  under  favorable  conditions.  The  too  close  prox- 
imity of  other  plants,  and  the  checking  of  the  root  growth  by 
stagnant  water,  or  bv  an  unfavorable  subsoil,  will  arrest  it  ; — so 
that  a  field  which  has  not  been  too  heavily  seeded  can  never  bear 
too  many  shoots, — no  matter  how  rich  it  is, — nor  can  it  bear  a 
full  crop  unless  both  the  mechanical  and  the  chemical  condition 
of  the  soil  are  such  as  to  conduce  to  a  sufficient  continuation  of 
the  tillering  process. 

WINTER    WHEAT. 

The  great  drawback  in  the  raising  of  winter  wheat  is  found  in 
the  liability  of  the  plant  to  be  killed  by  frost.  As  winter  wheat  is 
a  perfectly  "hardy  "  plant,  this  winter  killing  is  never  the  result 
of  the  direct  action  of  the  frost  on  the  plant  itself,  but  rather 
on  the  soil.  If  wheat  is  deeply  rooted,  a  single  hard  freezing  of 
the  soil,  by  its  lifting  effect,  actually  breaks  the  upper  part  of  the 
plant  from  its  lower  roots,  and  so  greatly  injures  it.  The  worst 
effects  are  produced,  however,  by  the  repeated  freezing  and  thaw- 
ing of  the  soil.  Thus  :  a  hard  frost  lifts  up  the  soil,  (and  carries 
the  plant  with  it,)  then  comes  a  warm  sun  which  thaws  the  upper 
soil  and  allows  it  to  fall  back  to  a  lower  level,  leaving  the  crown 
of  the  plant  out  of  the  ground  ;  the  next  frost  takes  a  fresh  hold 
on  the  plant  and  raises  it  again  -,  another  thaw  leaves  it  still 
higher  ;  and  thus  the  process  goes  on  until  the  crown  is  so  far  above 
the  ground  as  to  be  exposed  to  the  action  of  the  weather,  entirely 


GRAIN   CRors.  255 

unprotected  by  the  soil  in  which  it  properly  belongs,  and  the  plant 
is  killed. 

As  this  winter  killing  is  largely  due  to  an  excess  of  moisture  in 
the  soil,  it  is  very  much  modified  bv  under-draining  ;  but  not 
entirely  prevented.  A  top-dressing  with  sea-weed,  stable  manure 
containing  a  great  deal  of  straw  or  other  suitable  material,  will  be 
of  great  service  ;  but  there  is  nothing  so  good  as  a  complete  cov- 
ering of  snow  throughout  the  winter.  This,  of  course,  is  a  matter 
of  climate,  and  is  entirely  beyond  the  farmer's  control.  In  cold 
regions,  where  snow  does  not  lie  throughout  the  winter,  and  where 
top-dressing  is  not  practicable,  the  seed  should  be  sown  as  late  as 
the  first  of  October,  and  covered  not  more  than  half  an  inch  deep. 
Planted  in  this  wav,  the  roots  will  nearly  all  be  in  the  immediate 
surface,  and  there  will  be  less  danger  from  freezing  than  where  the 
seed  is  covered  several  inches  deep. 

SPRING    WHEAT. 

Spring  wheat  is  somewhat  less  productive  and  less  valuable 
(because  making  a  less  attractive  flour)  than  winter  wheat,  but  in 
regions  where  the  latter  is  apt  to  be  winter  killed,  it  is  the  safer 
variety  to  grow.  It  should  be  planted  as  early  as  possible  in  the 
spring,  and  is  said  to  grow  best  in  a  somewhat  lighter  soil  than 
winter  wheat. 

Wheat,  from  its  great  importance,  has  received  much  and  most 
careful  attention  from  scientific  men  and  from  practical  farmers. 
There  is  an  immense  number  of  varieties  culti\'ated  ;  valuable 
experiments  have  been  made  with  all  conceivable  sorts  of  manures  ; 
the  diseases  to  which  the  plant  is  subject  have  been  made  the 
subject  of  especial  study  and  investigation  ;  the  insects  by  which 
the  crop  is  sometimes  almost  swept  away  have  been  carefully 
examined,  and  their  habits  clearly  described  ;  and  almost  innu- 
merable implements  for  planting,  manuring,  weeding,  harvesting, 
thrashing,  and  cleaning  have  been  invented  and  put  in  use.  To 
enter  satisfactorily  into  these  details,  in  this  limited  space,  would  be 
ir 


256  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

impossible,  and  the  reader  is  referred  to  the  various  works  on 
the  subject  which  are  to  be  obtained  from  au;ricultural  booksellers. 
In  considering  all  that  I  have  myself  read  on  the  subject,  the 
following  points  strike  me  as  being  especially  worthy  of  the  atten- 
tion of  all  wheat  growers: — 

I.  The  land  mav,  with  advantage,  be  made  as  rich  as  possible, 
— the  application  of  fresh  stable  manure  in  the  immediate  prepa- 
ration of  the  crop  being  avoided. 

II.  It  should  be — either  naturallv  or  artificiallv — thoroughly 
well  drained. 

III.  The  seed  should  be  selected  with  care,  and  of  the  sort 
that  is  most  likeh'  to  succeed  in  the  climate  and  soil  of  the  locality. 

IV.  The  seed  should  always  be  drilled  rather  than  sown  broad- 
cast, 

V.  The  ridges  made  by  the  drill  should  not  be  leveled  by  the 
harrow  or  roller  until  after  the  ground  has  settled  in  the  spring. 

VI.  The  amount  of  seed  should  be  from  one  bushel,  or  even 
less,  on  very  rich  land,  to  two  bushels  on  the  least  rich  on  which 
it  will  pay  to  grow  wheat. 

VII.  Wherever  sufficient  help  can  be  obtained,  it  will  probably 
pay  to  hoe  the  crop  early  in  the  spring, — and  it  will  certainly  pay 
to  remove  all  weeds  growing  among  it. 

VIII.  The  crop  should  be  cut  from  ten  davs  to  two  weeks 
before  the  grain  is  thoroughly  ripe. 

By  proper  attention  to  these  requirements,  I  believe  that  the 
wheat  crop  of  the  United  States  may  be  increased  from  its 
present  average  of  about  12  bushels  per  acre  (or  less)  to  the  28 
bushels  (or  thereabout)  which  is  the  average  in  Great  Britain.  I 
also  believe  that  much  of  the  so-called  worn-out  land  of  New 
England  may  be  made  to  produce  profitable  crops  of  wheat.  The 
freight  on  30  bushels  of  wheat  from  a  farm  in  Minnesota  to  the 
city  of  New  York  is  more  than  the  interest  on  the  total  value  of 
an  acre  of  good  land  in  New  England,  and  New  England  is  sup- 
plied with  its  breadstuffs  very  largely  from  the  far  West. 


GRAIN    CROPS.  257 

RYE. 

More  hardy  and  better  suited  to  land  of  inferior  quality  than 

wheat,  rye  may  be  considered   the   great   bread    crop    of  nonhern 

countries  in   which   wheat  cannot   easily  be  grown.      It   makes  a 

nutritious,  though  dark-colored,  bread,  and   its  bran  is  more  valu- 

^able  than  the  bran  of  wheat  as  a  food  for  domestic  animals. 

Ordinarily,  the  cultivation  of  rye  is  much  more  careless  than  is 
that  of  wheat,  probably  for  the  reason  that  a  paying  crop  can  be 
much  more  easily  grown.  But  if  it  received  in  all  respects  the 
same  attention,  there  is  no  doubt  that  the  result  in  money  would 
be  almost,  if  not  quite,  equally  good,  for  while  the  yield  of  grain 
is  increased  in  proportion  to  the  care  bestowed,  the  straw  which, 
under  the  best  circumstances,  yields  very  largely,  is,  when  hand- 
thrashed,  of  great  value,  being  worth  now,  in  the  Eastern  markets, 
about  $35  per  ton. 

Rye  is  much  better  able  than  wheat  is,  to  withstand  rough 
treatment  in  winter.  In  fact,  except  upon  very  wet  land,  it  is 
rarely  winter-killed  to  any  great  extent.  It  grows  best  on 
rather  light  land,  and  may,  with  advantage,  be  sown  early  in  Sep- 
tember, though,  if  the  autumn  is  long  and  warm,  it  will  grow 
so  large  as  to  make  it  advisable  to  feed  it  down  before  winter 
sets  in. 

A  well-established  field  of  rye  is  the  first  field  on  the  farm  to 
turn  green  in  the  spring,  and  it  is  frequently  sown  to  be  used  exclu- 
sively for  spring  pasture,  being  plowed  under  as  a  green  crop  after 
the  grass  is  well  started. 

As  a  soiling  crop,  rye  is,  by  reason  of  its  earliness,  very  import- 
ant, and  it  will  be  further  considered  in  this  connection,  in  the 
chapter  on  soiling. 

OATS. 

The  cultivation  of  oats  is  so  universal  and  so  well  understood, 
that  it  is  hardly  necessary  to  say  more  here  on  the  subject  than 
that  they  should  be  sown  at  the  earliest  practicable  moment  after 
the  frost  is  out  of  the  ground  ;  that  they  do  much  better  when  drilled 


258  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

than  when  sown  broadcast,  and  that  xhey  are  better  adapted  to  hght 
than  to  heavy  lands.  They  are  an  exhausting  crop,  but  for  son-.e 
years  they  have  borne  so  high  a  price  that  their  cultivation  is  suffi- 
cientlv  profitable  to  enable  us  to  buy  manure  to  repair  the  damage. 
Perhaps  it  is  not  exactly  correct  to  attribute  their  injurious  effect 
entirely  to  the  exhaustion  of  the  land,  as  some  of  the  injury  that 
thev  cause  is  no  doubt  due  to  the  tact  that  their  roots  bind  the  soil 
together  in  clods  which  it  is  difficult  to  reduce. 

Oat  straw  is  more  valuable  than  anv  other  for  fodder  for 
domestic  animals.  If  the  crop  is  harvested  as  it  should  be,  before 
the  grain  is  fully  mature,  the  straw  will  be  but  little  ijiferior  to 
common  hay,  especially  if  fed  in  connection  with  roots. 

BARLEY. 

Barley  may  be  sown  somewhat  later  than  oats,  and  it  is  best 
suited  to  rather  heavier  soil  than  these  prefer.  On  any  soil,  how- 
ever, that  is  in  good  condition,  provided  it  is  sufficiently  drained, 
it  is,  at  the  usual  prices,  a  profitable  crop,  though  the  straw  is  less 
valuable  for  feeding  purposes  than  is  that  of  either  oats  or  wheat. 

BUCKWHEAT. 

I  can  say  but  little  concerning  this  crop,  save  that  it  will  grow 
better  than  almost  any  other  will  on  poor,  thin,  light  soils  ;  that  it 
should  not  be  sown  in  the  latitude  of  New  York  before  the  lOth 
of  Julv,  and  that  it  must  be  harvested  before  the  frost. 

Planted  earlv  in  the  season,  it  makes  a  luxuriant  growth  of 
stem,  but  produces  but  little  grain.  It  is  sometimes  so  planted  to 
be  plowed  in  as  a  green  crop  on  land  intended  for  wheat  or  rve, 
but  it  is  much  less  valuable  for  this  purpose  than  is  clover,  its 
only  advantage  being  that  much  less  time  is  required  for  its  pro- 
duction. 

It  is  especially  important,  as  a  green  crop,  on  foul  land,  as  it 
fully  occupies  the  ground  to  the  exclusion  of  every  thing  else,  and 
as  three  crops  may  be  grown  and  plowed  under  during  a  single 


GRAIN    CROPS.  259 

season,  poor,  weedy  land  may  sometimes  be  more  cheaply  reclaimed 
by  its  aid  than  in  any  other  way. 

Buckwheat  is  considerably  grown  by  farmers  who  produce  milk 
for  sale  to  the  large  cities,  for  the  sake  of  its  bran.  Having;  the 
grain  ground  at  home,  they  sell  the  flour,  and  feed  the  bran  to 
their  cows,  adding  very  much  to  the  quantity,  and  taking  no  little 
from  the  quality  of  their  milk. 


CHAPTER     XI. 


ROOT    CROPS. 


It  would  not  be  an  extravagant  statement  to  say  that  the 
cultivation  of  root  crops  is  not  known  in  America  ;  for,  notwith- 
standing the  fact  that  it  is  usual  to  see  one  or  two  acres  of  turnips 
or  carrots  on  a  farm,  the  cultivation  of  these  crops  to  the  extent 
to  which  they  are  grown  in  Europe  almost  never  occurs  in 
America.  The  reasons  for  this  are  obvious,  and  are  based  chiefly 
upon  the  high  price  of  farm  labor,  and  upon  the  fact  that,  except 
in  certain  limited  regions,  women  and  children  rarely  work  in  the 
f^eld. 

The  growth  of  turnips  and  mangels  forms  one  of  the  leading 
items  of  the  cultivation  of  nearly  all  English  farms,  and  a  very 
large  part  of  the  work  is  done  by  women  and  children,  frequently 
working  in  gangs  under  a  contractor,  and  moving  from  one  part 
of  the  country  to  another,  as  their  services  may  be  required.  It 
will  be  a  long  time  before  farmers  in  this  countrv  will  be  able  to 
make  any  thing  like  the  important  use  of  these  crops  to  which 
they  have  attained  in  more  thickly  settled  regions  ; — for  where  a 
farm  of  from  fifty  to  two  hundred  acres  is  operated  entirely  by 
two  or  three  hands,  they  have  quite  enough  to  do  to  attend  to  the 
cultivation  of  the  corn  crop  and  the  harvesting  of  the  hav,  both 
of  which  occur  at  the  time  when  the  most  labor  is  required  in 
the  root  fields. 

This  state  of  affairs,  howe\er,  while  it  is  often  an  argument 
against  the  growth  of  verv  large  areas  of  roots,  bv  no  means  mili- 
tates against  the  cultivation  of  such  smaller  patches  as  it  may  be 
within  the  power  of  the  farmer  to  properly  attend  to.      On  good 


ROOT    CROPS.  261 

land,  in  a  good  state  of  preparation,  and  with  skillful  management, 
the  amount  of  food  produced  is  very  much  greater,  in  proportion 
to  the  labor  and  expense  attending  the  cultivation,  than  can  be 
obtained  in  any  other  way  ;  and  when  we  consider  the  great  value 
of  roots  for  the  winter  feeding  of  animals,  and  the  incidental  value 
of  their  tops  for  fall  feeding,  it  may  be  safely  stated,  that,  even 
where  the  amount  of  help  on  the  farm  is  in  small  proportion  to  its 
area  and  the  requirement  for  other  work,  it  would  really  pay  the 
farmer  better  to  concentrate  his  efforts  and  his  manure  upon  a 
smaller  surface,  and  let  the  rest  of  the  farm  run  into  natural  pas- 
ture. However,  I  am  not  disposed  to  recommend  this  or  any 
other  revolution  in  the  farming  of  the  United  States  ; — for,  in  the 
first  place,  the  recommendation  would  be  disregarded  ;  and,  in  the 
second  place,  it  is  very  questionable  whether  revolutions  in  agri- 
culture, except  such  as  are  brought  about  in  a  slow  and  natural  way, 
would  be  of  any  permanent  value.  .  Our  farms  are  now  suited  in 
size  and  in  general  arrangement  to  the  ideas  and  to  the  capacities 
of  our  farmers  ;  and,  as  fast  as  these  ideas  and  capacities  change, 
or  range  themselves  in  accordance  with  higher  requirements,  just 
so  rapidly  will  the  farms  themselves  conform  to  the  altered  condi- 
tions. And  an  effort  to  bring  about  a  rapid  general  change  in  favor 
of  any  given  new  system  would  probably  be  attended  with  quite  as 
much  disadvantage  as  benefit.  Holding  this  view,  I  propose  only 
to  state  some  of  the  results  which  it  is  possible  to  attain  by  means 
of  root  culture,  and  to  give  directions  for  the  cultivation  of  the 
different  crops.  The  extent  to  which,  and  the  manner  in  which, 
the  growth  of  roots  shall  be  adopted  on  any  given  farm,  must 
rest  entirely  with  the  judgment  of  the  farmer  himself.  He  will, 
if  he  is  a  good  farmer,  do  exactly  that  which  promises  the  best 
compensation  for  his  capital  and  his  labor.  Successful  root  cul- 
ture requires  that  the  land  be  in  the  best  possible  condition. 
Many  a  field  will  produce  large  crops  of  corn,  and  of  other  grain, 
on  which  it  would  be  folly  to  attempt  to  raise  roots  in  any  consider- 
able quantity.  The  land  must  be  rich,  well  and  deeply  cultivated, 
thoroughly  well  drained,  and  free  from  stones  ;  and  it  had  better 
be  exposed  rather  to  the  morning  than  to  the  afternoon  sun.      On 


262  HANDY-BOOK    OF  HUS-BANDBY. 

such  a  field  it  is  hardly  possible  that  the  proper  amount  of  labor, 
judiciously  directed,  should  fail  to  produce  most  profitable  resi«lts. 
But  \t  the  land  is  only  half-rich ;  if,  in  wet  weather,  it  is  too  moist, 
and  in  dry  weather  too  hard-baked  ;  if  it  is  filled  with  the  seeds  of 
troublesome  weeds,  or  with  the  roots  of  quack-grass,  or  if  its  ex- 
posure is  a  cold  and  unfavorable  one,  it  may  be  fairly  assumed  that 
the  labor  and  manure  expended  in  an  effort  to  raise  root  crops  will 
bring  but  a  meager  and  unsatisfactory  return.  While  the  cultiva- 
tion of  roots  is  a  necessary  accompaniment  of  high  farming, — 
with  poor  farming,  at  least  so  far  as  the  root  land  is  concerned, 
they  can  hardly  fail  to  produce  a  large  crop  of  disappointment  to 
the  grower.  It  is  possible  to  produce  on  an  acre  of  land  two 
thousand  bushels  of  mangels,  or  fifteen  hundred  bushels  of  tur- 
nips. It  is  hardly  possible  to  produce  such  a  crop  as  this  without 
deriving  a  large  amount  of  profit  from  the  operation  ;  for  it  can 
only  be  done  under  such  circumstances  as  will  give  the  greatest 
possible  effect  to  the  amount  of  manure  used  for  the  crop,  and  to 
the  labor  that  its  care  involves.  It  is  easy  on  ordinary  soils,  ordi- 
narily manured  and  not  very  carefully  attended,  to  raise  three 
hundred  bushels  of  beets  and  from  one  hundred  and  fifty  to  two 
hundred  bushels  of  turnips.  Probably  under  no  circumstances 
would  there  be  a  profit  attending  the  growth  of  such  a  crop.  It 
will  be  readily  seen,  then,  that  the  adoption  of  root  culture  on  a 
large  scale  implies  a  willingness  to  resort  to  such  careful  modes 
of  cultivation,  and  such  effective  means  of  fertilizing,  as  will 
suffice  for  very  much  larger  crops  than  are  now  common  on 
American  farms.  In  favorable  seasons,  and  under  the  most  favor- 
able circumstances,  mangels  should  yield  a  thousand  bushels  to 
the  acre,  and  rutabaga  turnips  not  less  than  from  six  to  eight 
hundred,  and  such  crops  should  pay  very  well. 

It  is  frequently  the  case, — indeed,  it  is  very  common  through 
the  sea-board  regions  of  New  England  and  New  Jersey,  that  the 
demand  for  roots  for  the  general  market  is  so  active  and  reliable, 
that  it  will  pay  to  go  to  greater  expense,  and  submit  to  greater 
inconvenience,  for  the  sake  of  growing  root  crops,  than  would  be 
possible,   or   at  least   profitable,  in  a   purely  agricultural  region. 


ROOT   CROPS.  263 

For  instance,  rutabaga  turnips  are  now  (January,  1869)  selling  in 
the  New  York  market  for  $2.50  per  barrel,  which  is  very  nearly 
$1.00  a  bushel.  These  turnips  probably  yield  to  their  producers, 
after  deducting  the  cost  of  transportation,  commissions,  etc.,  75 
cents  a  bushel;  and,  at  this  price,  even  the  small  crops  of  the 
unfavorable  season  of  1868  must  have  been  generally  profitable. 
It  is  hardly  necessary  to  tell  a  farmer,  however,  that,  except  as  a 
condiment  with  other  food,  being  fed  in  very  small  quantities, 
roots  are  worth  for  feeding  nothing  like  75  cents  a  bushel.  By 
reference  to  tables,  showing  the  theoretical  and  experimental 
value  of  different  sorts  of  food,  it  will  be  seen  that  the  amount  of 
roots  necessary  to  be  fed,  in  order  to  produce  the  same  effect  as 
a  given  weight  of  hay,  is  very  large  ;  and,  if  we  were  to  take  only 
this  table  as  a  basis  for  our  estimate  of  the  value  of  roots  in  feed- 
ing, it  would  seem  questionable  whether  it  would  pay  to  raise 
them  at  all,  except  under  the  very  best  circumstances.  It  is  not 
true,  however,  that  in  the  feeding  of  farm  stock  the  importance 
of  roots  can  be  exactly  measured  by  this  standard.  In  addition  to 
their  nutritive  elements,  they  have  the  very  great  advantage  of 
being  a  fresh  and  succulent  food,  that  may  be  easily  kept  through- 
out the  whole  season,  and  the  effect  of  which,  on  the  animal 
organization,  is  similar  to  that  of  salad,  celery,  and  other  green 
vegetables,  used  on  our  own  tables  during  the  winter  season. 
They  keep  the  system  in  a  more  healthy  and  better  lubricated  con- 
dition, and  greatly  stimulate  the  growth  and  thrift  of  young  stock. 
Where  they  are  largely  fed,  all  animals,  both  old  and  young, 
come  out  in  the  spring  of  the  year  in  much  better  condition  than 
if  kept  only  on  dry  food,  however  rich  it  may  be.  The  value  of 
roots  in  their  influence  on  the  manure  that  results  from  their 
consumption,  is  also  very  great,  and  should  constitute  a  consider- 
able element  of  any  estimate  of  their  value.  The  roots  which 
it  is  most  advantageous  to  grow  for  use  on  the  farm  are  the  fol- 
lowing : — 

Common  Turnips,  Carrots, 

Rutabaga  Turnips,  Mangels. 


264  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

Parsnips  are  sometimes  grown,  and  thev  yield  largely  ;  but  the 
labor  required  in  digging  them  is  often  an  argument  against  their 
cultivation,  except  on  very  light  lands. 

Except  for  the  growth  of  common  turnips,  which  mav  gener- 
ally be  raised  as  a  "  stolen  crop,"  or  on  land  lying  fallow  late  in 
the  season,  the  field  on  which  it  is  proposed  to  raise  roots  of 
whatever  kind  should,  first  of  all,  be  most  thoroughlv  under- 
drained.  If  it  is  of  a  light  texture  and  is  underlaid  with  a  soil 
through  which  the  water  of  rains  will  percolate  freely,  and  if  it 
receives  no  ooze-water  from  land  King  above  it,  the  natural 
drainage  is  sufficient  ; — but  where\er  this  is  not  the  case  ;  wher- 
ever, either  early  in  the  spring  or  late  in  the  fall,  the  surface  of 
the  land,  when  plowed,  appears  damp  and  soggy  when  other 
land  is  dry  ;  or  wherever,  during  seasons  of  excessive  drought,  it 
cracks  into  hard  clods,  it  is  useless  to  attempt  to  raise  paving 
crops  of  these  vegetables  unless  a  thorough  s^•stem  of  under- 
draininjr  with  tiles  or  stones  or  brush  or  some  other  material  is 
first  carried  into  effect.  The  land  being  properly  drained  or 
naturally  sufficiently  dry,  it  should  receive  the  most  careful  and 
thorough  attention.  If  the  use  of  the  land  can  be  spared,  at  least 
one  season  should  be  exclusively  devoted  to  the  preparation  for 
the  growth  of  the  roots.  Clover,  buckwheat,  or  some  other 
green  crop  should  be  grown  to  be  plowed  in  in  the  fall.  Probably 
the  best  course  would  be  to  manure  the  land  quite  heavily  with 
stable  manure  in  August  or  early  in  September,  and  then  to 
plow  it  up  deeply  and  thoroughh-,  burying,  at  as  great  a  depth  as 
possible,  the  green  crop  and  the  manure  that  has  been  applied  to 
the  surface  of  the  land  ;  and  then  to  run  a  subsoil  plow  in  the 
bottom  of  each  furrow  as  deeply  as  it  can  be  done  with  the  force 
at  command,  thus  loosening  the  earth  that  has  been  indurated  by 
the  treading  of  teams  and  by  the  sole  of  the  plow  during  years  of 
previous  cultivation.  This  plowing  being  done,  the  surface  should 
be  left  exposed  in  the  furrow  to  the  action  of  the  frosts  of  winter 
and  the  fall  and  spring  rains.  The  fall  plowing  having  been  done 
not  later  than  September,  the  roots  and  stems  of  the  green  crop 
will  be  sufficiently  rotted  not  to  interfere  with  subsequent  cultiva- 


ROOT    CROPS.  265 

tion  ;  and,  as  early  as  possible  in  the  spring,  the  land  should  be 
rolled  and  the  harrow  (preferably  Shares'  harrow)  should  be  run 
lengthwise  of  the  furrow,  at  least  once,  and,  if  necessary,  two  or 
three  times.  The  ground  should  then  be  cross-plowed,  and  again 
rolled  and  harrowed.  After  this,  it  should  receive  a  copious  top- 
dressing  of  stable  manure,  or  not  less  than  five  hundred  pounds 
per  acre  of  a  thoroughly  good  superphosphate  of  lime  or  of 
Peruvian  guano  ; — and  this  manure,  whatever  its  kind,  should  be 
only  lightly  harrowed  by  a  single  operation,  and  then  left  undis- 
turbed until  after  a  heavy  rain,  when  a  second  harrowing  and 
rolling  will  prepare  the  ground  for  the  reception  of  the  seed. 

The  operations  detailed  above  will  have  the  effect  of  loosening 
the  soil  to  a  great  depth,  of  giving  it  a  good  supply  of  organic 
matter,  and  of  thoroughly  enriching  it  with  the  different  elements 
of  plant  food  that  the  coming  crop  will  require  ;  while  its  surface 
will  be  so  freed  from  clods  and  other  inequalities  as  to  place  it  in 
the  best  condition  for  the  rapid  germination  of  the  delicate  seeds 
with  which  it  is  to  be  sown.  Except  as  to  the  character  of  the 
special  commercial  fertilizer  to  be  applied,  the  operations,  as  far 
as  detailed,  are  suited  to  the  growth  of  rutabagas,  carrots,  or 
mangels,  but  subsequent  operations  must  depend  on  the  variety  of 
root  that  it  is  intended  to  grow. 

RUTABAGA     TURNIPS. 

What  is  called  in  England  the  Swedish  turnip,  is  known  here 
as  the  rutabaga,  or  white  French  turnip.  It  is  distinct  from  the 
common  turnip,  being  more  like  the  cabbage  in  many  of  its 
characteristics.  Its  German  name  is  "  cabbage-turnip."  It  is 
subject  to  the  same  diseases  as  cabbage, — notably  to  the  club-foot, 
— is  consumed  in  its  early  stages  by  the  skipping-beetle,  and 
grows  to  its  greatest  perfection  under  circumstances  which  are 
best  adapted  to  the  growth  of  cabbage,  which  it  cannot  success- 
fully follow  or  be  followed  by,  except  in  very  rare  cases, — and  it 
has  the  same  advantage'  that  it  may  be  easily  and  safely  trans- 
planted. 


266  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

While  the  rutabaga  contains  a  not  very  large  quantity  of  phos- 
phoric acid,  it  is  more  specifically  benefited  than  is  almost  any 
other  plant  by  the  use  of  bone-dust,  superphosphate  of  lime,  or 
any  other  fertilizer  in  which  phosphoric  acid  is  the  leading  ingre- 
dient ;  and,  singularly,  while  it  does  contain  a  yery  large  amount 
of  nitrogen,  its  growth  is  often  rather  injured  than  benefited  by 
the  excessive  use  of  ammoniacal  manures.  For  this  reason  it 
will  always  be  found  prudent  to  mix  the  stable  manure  used  so 
thoroughly  with  the  soil  that  its  more  active  stimulating  effect 
may  be  modified  by  its  combination  with  earth  ;  and,  in  all  cases 
to  use  bone-dust  or  superphosphate  of  lime,  and  not  Peruvian 
guano,  which,  although  it  contains  a  good  deal  of  phosphoric 
acid,  is  a  highly  stimulating  ammoniacal  manure.  It  is  a  very 
general  belief,  which  has  been  borne  out  in  my  own  experience 
and  which  I  believe  to  be  well  founded,  that,  both  in  the  case  of 
cabbages  and  of  rutabagas,  the  manure  of  swine  is  injurious  from 
its  tendency,  real  or  supposed,  to  increase  the  formation  of 
''clump  roots,"  or  what  in  turnips  is  known  as  "  fingers  and  toes." 
As  a  special  fertilizer  for  rutabagas,  nothing  that  I  have  ever 
tried  has  been  so  effective  as  a  liberal  application  of  New  Jersey 
green-sand  marl ;  and  I  have  always  imagined  that  I  obtained 
very  beneficial  results  from  the  even  sowing  of  air-slacked  lime, 
applied  by  means  of  a  broadcast  sower,  immediately  before  plant- 
ing the  seeds  or  setting  out  the  plants.  Peter  Henderson  asserts, 
that  lime  is  a  sure  agent  in  preventing  the  clump-foot  disease  ; 
whether  this  is  the  case  or  not,  the  effect  of  a  light  application  of 
lime  is,  in  many  ways,  so  beneficial  that  its  use  is  strongly  to  be 
recommended,  wherever  it  can  be  obtained. 

It  is  the  almost  universal  custom  in  England,  where  roots  are 
very  largely  grown,  to  raise  turnips,  and  mangels  as  well,  on  raised 
ridges  or  back-furrows  ;  and  the  facts  that  in  this  way  we 
increase  the  depth  of  soil  directly  under  the  plant,  and  that  horse 
cultivation  during  the  early  stages  of  growth  is  easier,  are  argu- 
ments in  favor  of  the  custom.  Generally,  however,  flat  cultiva- 
tion for  all  crops,  being  the  most  naturarl,  is  considered  the  most 
advisable  ;  and   the   question  whether   to   ridge   or  not   to  ridge 


BOOT    CROPS.  267 

should  be  decided,  perhaps,  with  reference  to  the  character  of  the 
land.  If  it  is  either  very  stony  or  very  "•  cloddy,"  or  if,  for  any 
reason,  it  is  not  of  uniform  fineness,  it  will  be  well  to  throw  it 
into  ridges,  even  if  the  ridges  be  afterward  raked  ofF  or  flattened 
down  by  rolling  a  barrel  over  them.  By  some  means  they 
should  be  so  depressed  that  there  will  be  no  danger  of  the  ele- 
vated bank  of  earth  becoming  too  dry  during  the  heat  of  summer. 

Rutabagas  are  grown  both  by  planting  the  seed  in  place,  and 
by  raising  young  plants  in  a  seed-bed  for  subsequent  transplanting. 
The  almost  universal  system  is  to  sow  the  seed  where  the  plants 
are  to  grow,  transplanting  only  as  may  be  necessary  to  fill  up 
vacant  spaces.  All  things  considered,  this  system  is  probably  the 
most  advisable,  although  an  experienced  farmer  of  my  acquaintance, 
who  has  experimented  carefully  during  the  past  three  years,  asserts 
that  he  finds  the  growth  of  his  transplanted  roots  to  be  so  much 
greater  as  to  amply  compensate  for  the  trouble.  From  my  own 
experiments  in  this  direction,  not  only  with  this  crop  but  with  sev- 
eral others,  I  am  strongly  inclined  to  believe  that  the  labor  of  the 
whole  season  is  less  under  the  transplanting  than  under  the  seed- 
planting  method,  for  the  reason  that  with  turnips  and  mangels  the 
early  growth  is  so  slow,  and  the  small  plants  so  delicate,  that  the 
cleaning  of  the  ground  for  the  first  and  second  times  requires  very 
careful  hand-work,  which  adds  greatly  to  the  cost  of  cultivation. 
As  the  transplanting  takes  place  much  later  in  the  season  than 
the  sowing,  we  have  ample  time  for  at  least  three  light  cultivations 
by  horse  power,  which  will  destroy  the  started  germs  of  a  very 
large  portion  of  the  weeds,  that,  under  the  planting  system,  would 
have  to  be  removed  by  the  hoe.  The  manner  in  which  trans- 
planting should  be  done  is  referred  to  more  at  length  under  the 
head  of  mangels.  For  turnips,  the  process  requires  only  such 
modification  as  their  smaller  size  and  greater  delicacy  render 
obviously  necessary. 

The  ground  being  in  thoroughly  good  condition,  and  in  all 
respects  suited  for  the  production  of  a  large  crop,  the  most  import- 
ant consideration  is  the  distance  at  which  the  rows  are  to  be 
placed,  and  the  distance  in  the  rows  to  which  the  plants  are  to  be 


263  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

thinned  out.  The  temptation  is  always  to  plant  at  too  narrow  in- 
tervals. The  rows  should  never  be  nearer  together  than  twenty- 
seven  inches,  and  even  thirty  would  probably  produce  better  results. 
This  gives  ample  room  for  thorough  cultivation  bv  horse-power, 
reducing  the  amount  of  hand-work  to  onlv  the  cultivation  of  the 
rows  themselves.  The  roots  are  thinned  out  at  distances  varving 
from  six  to  fifteen  inches.  Six  inches  is  very  much  too  close,  and 
fifteen  inches  may  be  a  little  wider  than  necessarv.  It  is  believed, 
however,  that  a  larger  weight  of  roots  from  a  given  area  of  land 
will  be  produced  if  the  plants  stand  at  intervals  of  twelve  inches 
than  if  nearer  together.  At  this  distance,  and  with  thirty  inches 
between  the  rows,  the  entire  surface  of  the  ground  will  be  covered 
bv  the  leaves,  and  each  plant  will  have,  not  onlv  ample  feeding- 
ground  for  its  roots,  but  ample  room  for  the  largest  development. 
If  ihe  land  is  thoroughlv  well  pulverized,  and  enriched  with  per- 
fect uniformitv,  at  these  distances  every  root  should  be  perfect. 

When  the  crop  is  to  be  transplanted,  the  seed  should  be  sown 
in  a  thoroughly  prepared  seed-bed,  about  the  middle  of  Mav.  The 
young  plants  should  be  dusted  with  soot,  ashes,  road  dust,  or 
air-slacked  lime,  or  with  some  other  powder  that  will  drive  away 
the  skipping-beetle,  which  often  causes  serious  loss.  The  rows 
need  not  be  more  than  twelve  inches  asunder,  and  the  plants  may 
stand  quite  thickly  in  the  row,  at  intervals  of  not  more  one-half 
inch  or  one  inch.  The  plants  for  an  acre  may,  in  this  way,  be 
raised  upon  a  few  square  rods  of  ground  ;  although,  for  fear  of 
accidents,  it  is  always  best  to  be  liberal  in  this  respect.  The 
amount  of  seed  sown  for  the  transplanting  of  an  acre  should  be 
not  less  than  three-quarters  of  a  pound  ;  and,  if  there  is  the  least 
danger  that  the  seed  mav  not  be  ot  uniformly  good  quality,  it  will 
be  poor  economy  not  to  use  at  least  twice  this  quantity.  The 
seed-bed  should  be  kept  thoroughly  clean,  free  from  weeds,  and 
well  pulverized  ;  and,  if  the  weather  is  dry,  should  be  occasionally 
watered,  in  order  that  the  plants  mav  be  as  strong  and  firm  as  pos- 
sible at  transplanting  time.  They  should  be  set  out  in  place,  not 
later  than  the  middle  of  July,  if  the  crop  is  intended  for  consump- 
tion on  the  farm.      But  the  first  of  August  will  be  early  enough, 


EOOT    CROPS.  269 

if  it  is  intended  for  the  market.  In  this  latter  case  the  seed-bed 
need  not  be  planted  before  June  first.  If,  between  the  time  of 
planting  the  seed  and  setting  out  the  plants  in  the  field,  the  weather 
is  such  that  they  threaten  to  grow  to  too  large  a  size,  they  should 
be  retransplanted,  and  their  growth  in  this  way  checked.  Every 
transplanting  of  turnips,  or  any  thing  else  that  bears  transplanting 
at  all,  has  the  effect  of  increasing  the  bushiness  of  the  root,  and, 
ultimately,  the  stamina  of  the  plant.  Perhaps  it  would  pay  to  sow 
the  seed  as  early  as  the  first  of  May,  and  to  transplant  twice  be- 
tween that  time  and  the  first  of  August.  These  earlier  trans- 
plantings  are  accomplished  with  very  little  work,  as  they  are  done 
by  the  process  known  as  heeling  in.  A  narrow  furrow  being 
made  with  the  end  of  a  spade,  and  the  plants  set  almost  touching 
each  other  against  one  side  of  the  furrovv',  the  earth  is  returned  and 
pressed  closely  against  them  with  the  foot.  Each  transplanting 
will  check  the  growth  of  the  leaves  for  a  week  or  ten  days,  and 
during  this  time  the  severed  roots  will  establish  themselves  by 
making  several  strong  branches.  When  transplanted  again,  these 
branches  will  branch  again,  and  when  the  plant  is  finally  put  into 
its  place  in  the  field,  its  feeding  roots  will  be  much  more  numer- 
ous than  if  grown  directly  from  the  seed. 

When  the  seed  is  sown  directly  in  the  field,  the  amount  required 
for  an  acre  is  about  one  pound  ;  and  it  should  be  distributed  by 
a  drill-barrow, — Emery's  and  Holbrook's  being  probably  the 
best.  The  proper  time  for  field  planting  is  not  very  well  de- 
fined. For  the  production  of  large  roots  for  home  consump- 
tion, possibly  the  middle  of  June  would  not  be  too  early  for 
sowing  ; — for  market,  however,  from  the  seventh  to  the  tenth 
of  July  is  quite  early  enough.  If  the  seed  germinates  well,  there 
will  be  at  least  twenty  times  as  many  plants  produced  as  are  to  be 
left  after  the  final  thinning.  Therefore,  any  slight  attack  of  the 
skipping-beetle  may  be  disregarded  ;  but  the  field  should  be  closely 
watched,  and  if  in  anv  place  its  ravages  threaten  to  become  seri- 
ous, the  plants  should  be  carefully  dusted.  As  soon  as  the  plants 
have  grown  to  a  sufficient  size  to  mark  the  rows,  the  intervals 
between  them  should  be  very  lightly  scarified  by  the  horse-hoe, 


270  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

although  no  sign  of  a  weed  may  have  shown  itself.  In  fact, 
the  more  frequently  the  ground  is  disturbed,  and  the  more  thor- 
oughly the  growth  of  weeds  is  nipped  in  the  bud,  the  cheaper  and 
more  complete  will  be  the  season's  cultivation.  It  will,  indeed, 
be  found  profitable,  if  so  much  as  from  five  to  ten  acres  of  roots 
are  grown,  to  keep  a  horse-hoe  going  constantly  whenever  the 
land  is  sufficiently  dry.  When  the  turnips  have  produced  one  or 
two  rough  leaves,  the  sides  of  the  rows  should  be  lightly  hoed  by 
hand  immediately  after  the  passage  of  the  horse-hoe.  This  will 
destroy  all  weeds  except  those  starting  directlv  in  the  line  of  the 
turnips  ;  and  when  the  leaves  of  these  are  three  or  four  inches 
long,  the  singling  out  should  be  carefullv  done,  leaving  the  strong- 
est plants  at  inter\als  of  from  ten  to  fourteen  inches,  and  thor- 
oughly cleaning  all  of  the  intervening  ground.  The  effect  of  this 
thinning  on  the  appearance  of  the  field  is  always  such  as  to  leave 
a  very  poor  promise  of  a  crop,  but  within  a  few  days  the  plants, 
which  have  been  deprived  of  the  support  of  their  neighbors,  will 
gain  strength,  assume  a  more  stocky  form,  and  commence  their 
real  growth.  From  this  time  on,  until  the  roots  have  a  diameter 
of  about  an  inch,  the  hoeing  by  both  horse  and  hand  power  can- 
not be  too  frequent  or  thorough  for  profit.  The  best  of  all  horse 
cultivators,  so  far  as  my  experience  goes,  is  the  light  one-horse 
steel  subsoil  plow,  which  can  be  run  in  well-cultivated  land  to  a 
depth  of  six  or  eight  inches,  and  which  produces  such  a  thorough 
disturbance  of  the  mass  of  soil  as  it  is  difficult  to  accomplish  in 
any  other  way,  while  it  is  easily  drawn,  and  is  not  apt  to  throw 
dirt  on  to  the  leaves  of  the  crop.  If  I  were  obliged  to  discard  all 
but  one  of  my  horse-hoeing  implements,  I  should  retain  this  one 
for  all  work,  including  the  horse-hoeing  of  corn.  After  having 
attained  the  diameter  of  an  inch,  and  being  by  this  time  thoroughly 
cleaned,  the  crop  had  better  be  left  to  itself,  unless  the  land  is 
unusually  weedy  ; — for  the  development  of  the  roots  of  the  turnips 
so  completely  fills  the  soil,  that  even  its  very  surface  is  occupied 
by  fibers,  whose  destruction  would  be  injurious.  The  crop  may 
now  be  safely  "laid  by,"  and  left  to  take  care  of  itself  until  har- 
vest time.     If  it  is  not  now  doing  well,  no  effort  of  the  farmer 


ROOT    CROPS.  271 

can  help  it.  His  care  should  have  been  applied  during  the  previ- 
ous autumn  and  spring,  and  during  the  earlier  growth  of  the 
plants.  Nature  will  now  do  all  that  can  be  done,  and,  under 
favorable  circumstances,  all  that  can  be  desired. 

In  cultivation  by  transplanting,  very  much  of  this  labor  may  be 
dispensed  with.  Soon  after  the  plants  are  set  out  they  should 
receive  one  thorough  horse  cultivation  and  hand-hoeing,  but  they 
will  soon  so  far  occupy  the  ground,  that,  except  the  use  of  the 
subsoil  plow,  there  is  no  room,  and,  indeed,  no  necessity,  for 
further  cultivation. 

The  turnip  has  the  one  sreat  advantage,  that  its  harvesting  may 
be  postponed  until  nearly  all  other  farm  work  is  closed  for  the 
season.  I  have  learned  by  ample  experience  that  even  the  sever- 
est freezing,  provided  the  crop  is  not  locked  in  the  ground  for 
the  winter,  is  rather  beneficial  than  injurious.  During  the  autumn 
of  1867,  my  turnips  were  left  out  until  after  the  thermometer  had 
marked  12  degrees  Fahrenheit,  yet  they  were  excellent  for  the 
table,  and  kept  perfectly  until  late  in  the  spring.  If  left,  however, 
all  winter  in  the  ground,  in  the  latitude  of  New  York  or  of  Phila- 
delphia, they  would  undoubtedly  be  destroyed  by  frequent  freezing 
and  thawing.  Even  the  leaves  will  bear  severe  frost  without  in- 
jury. The  only  precautions  that  it  is  necessary  to  take  are,  not  to 
touch  either  tops  or  roots  until  the  frost  is  thoroughly  withdrawn, 
and  to  be  very  careful  not  to  postpone  the  harvesting  so  late  that 
they  cannot  be  removed,  free  from  frost,  before  winter  finally  sets 
in.  The  harvesting  is  easy  and  simple,  and  requires  no  directions, 
beyond  the  statement  that  the  tops  and  the  tap-roots  should  be  cut 
ofF,  but  that  the  turnip  generally  should  not  be  "  trimmed  "  until 
it  is  required  for  use  ;  as  each  abrasion  of  the  surface  establishes 
a  weak  point  at  which  decay  first  attacks  it,  and  the  less  cutting  it 
receives  before  being  stored  away,  the  better  its  chances  for  re- 
maining sound  until  wanted.  At  this  season  of  the  year,  the 
leaves  will  bear  stacking  in  considerable  heaps  without  fermen- 
tation, and  may  be  rehed  on  as  a  source  of  valuable  fodder  for 
some  weeks. 

During  the  harvesting  of  the  crop,  the  roots  may  be  thrown  to- 
la 


272  HANDY- 130 OK    OF    UUSliAXURY. 

gether  in  heaps  of  from  ten  to  twenty  bushels,  and  covered  with 
a  few  leaves  or  a  little  earth,  which  will  prevent  their  being  attack- 
ed by  frost,  until  they  can  be  finally  put  away  for  the  winter. 

CARROTS 

These  are  an  exceedingly  valuable  root  for  the  farmer,  and  have 
the  advantage  over  turnips,  that  thev  impart  no  unpleasant  flavor 
to  milk  and  butter,  and  that  they  add  somewhat  to  its  richness 
and  color.  For  horses,  they  are  especially  good  food,  and,  when 
administered  with  oats  and  hav,  have  the  effect  of  facilitating 
their  complete  digestion.  Carrots  cannot  be  transplanted,  and 
the  seed  must  be  sown  where  they  are  to  grow.  As  they  form 
very  much  less  top  than  turnips  do,  the  rows  may  be  put  much 
closer  together,  although,  unless  hand  labor  can  be  obtained 
to  advantage,  it  will  be  necessary  to  make  the  distance  sufficient 
for  the  use  of  the  horse-hoe.  The  seed  is  exceedingly  slow  in 
its  germination,  and  the  crop  is  a  perplexing  one  during  the  first 
two  or  three  weeks  of  its  growth,  as  manv  weeds,  unless  great 
care  is  taken,  will  push  beyond  it  and  obliterate  the  rows.  A 
common  fault  in  the  cultivation  of  carrots  is  to  plant  the  seed  too 
early  in  the  season.  Put  in  the  ground  early  in  Alay,  as  is  a 
quite  common  custom,  the  seed  lies  dormant,  often  for  nearly  a 
month,  during  the  whole  of  which  time  weeds  are  growing  and 
work  is  accumulating,  at  the  busiest  season  of  the  year  ;  while 
the  plants,  after  they  do  come  up,  are  so  feeble  that  their  early 
growth  is  exceedingly  slow.  Certainly,  the  labor  of  cultivation 
will  be  much  less,  and  the  amount  of  the  crop  probably  quite 
as  great,  if  the  seed  is  not  planted  till  the  tenth  of  June,  the 
preceding  weeks  having  been  industriously  employed  in  the  de- 
struction by  horse-power  of  the  early  sprouting  weeds.  It  will 
ordinarily  be  found  that  a  crop  planted  at  this  time,  will  very  soon 
catch  up  with  one  that  was  put  in  the  ground  a  month  earlier  ; 
while  the  cost  of  its  cultivation  will  not  be  one-fourth  so  much. 
As  soon  as  the  rag-leaf  of  the  plant  is  fairly  shown,  the  crop 
should  be  thinned  out,  as,  owing  to  the  length  of  the  root,  if  it 


ROOT    CROPS.  273 

is  left  much  later  than  this,  there  is  danger  that  it  will  be  broken 
off  at  the  crown  and  that  a  subsequent  growth  will  ensue,  re- 
quiring the  operation  to  be  repeated.  The  distance  at  which  the 
plants  should  be  left  in  the  rows  should  not  be  less  than  six 
inches,  and  probably  even  more  than  this  would  give  a  larger 
crop.  During  the  whole  of  the  months  of  June  and  July,  the 
carrot  field  should  be  very  closely  attended  to,  and  should  be  kept 
thoroughly  clean,  as  during  all  this  time  the  growth  of  the  plant 
is  slow,  and  the  effect  upon  it  of  the  growth  of  weeds  is  almost 
disastrous.  After  this  it  will  require  less  work,  but  at  no  time 
should  it  be  allowed  to  become  absolutely  weedy. 

Carrots  must  be  harvested  before  any  severe  freezing  of  the 
ground  takes  place,  and  the  roots  should  be  immediately  protected 
against  the  action  of  even  a  slight  frost,  as  any  freezing,  after 
they  are  taken  up,  greatly  increases  their  tendency  to  decay. 
Properly  harvested  and  well  secured  for  the  winter,  however, 
they  keep  perfectly  well  until  spring.  The  yield  of  the  crop  will, 
of  course,  depend  very  much  on  the  character  of  the  land,  and 
the  care  with  which  it  has  been  cultivated.  Probably  no  one 
thing,  however,  affects  the  result  so  much  as  the  perfection  of  the 
thinning.  In  Rhode  Island,  where  large  quantities  of  carrots  are 
grown  as  a  "stolen  crop"  between  onions,  and  where  the  seed 
is  merely  dropped  between  the  rows  of  onions,  sometimes  a  dozen 
in  a  place,  no  thinning  ever  being  done,  two  or  three  hundred 
bushels  is  considered  a  large  crop.  In  1819,  my  father  raised  a 
crop  on  very  stony  and  naturally  poor  land,  in  Westchester 
County,  New  York,  thinning  the  plants  to  intervals  of  from  six  to 
eight  inches  in  the  rows ;  and  received  from  the  Westchester 
County  Agricultural  Society,  in  1820,  the  silver  cup  awarded  for 
the  largest  crop  of  carrots,  on  proof  of  a  yield  of  over  one  thou- 
sand bushels  to  the  acre.  In  the  description  of  the  manner  in 
which  the  crop  was  raised,  published  in  the  Memoirs  of  the 
Board  of  Agriculture  of  the  State  of  New  York,  1823,  there 
appears  no  evidence  of  any  especially  favorable  circumstances 
beyond  the  perfect  natural  drainage  of  the  ground.  The  land 
was  stony,  would  produce  only  thirty  bushels  of  corn  to  the  acre 


274  liANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY, 

with  tlic  same  amount  of  manure  used  for  the  carrots,  and  was 
by  no  means  such  as  would  be  selected  as  best  adapted  for  the 
growth  of  this  crop.  The  large  crop  obtained  was  the  result 
mainly  of  very  careful  and  very  thorough  management.  In  those 
days  of  low  prices  the  total  cost  of  the  cultivation  and  harvesting 
was  only  $30  per  acre — about  three  cents  a  bushel  for  the  roots 
produced.  Of  course,  so  cheap  a  result  could  not  now  be  ob- 
tained, and  it  is  not  likely  that  it  ever  can  be  again  ;  thoug.r  when 
we  consider  the  relative  value  of  the  crop,  as  compared  with  that 
of  others  requiring  more  or  less  labor,  any  yield  nearly  so  large 
as  this  must  be  obtained  at  a  cheap  rate. 

As  they  require  considerable  more  labor  and  are  not  quite  so 
easily  kept  in  winter,  carrots  are  not  so  valuable  to  the  farmer  as 
either  rutabagas  or  mangels.  A  small  quantity  should  always  be 
raised  as  giving  an  excellent  varietv  in  feeding  -,  but  the  main  crop 
should  be  of  the  other  roots,  unless  there  is  some  reliable  local 
demand  for  carrots,  as  there  sometimes  is,  for  feeding  livery  and 
private  horses.  Whenever  so  high  a  price  as  30  cents  a  bushel 
can  be  relied  on,  and  especially  where  women  and  children  can 
be  hired  to  do  the  weeding  and  thinning,  for  a  portion  of  the  crop, 
(on  shares,)  or  for  moderate  daily  wages,  it  will  pay  exceedingly 
well  to  raise  carrots.  They  may  be  raised,  year  after  year,  on 
the  same  land  ;  and,  if  the  crop  is  kept  thoroughly  cleaned 
throughout  the  season,  the  work  of  weeding  will  be  yearly  less 
and  less. 

Carrots  are  grown  very  largely  in  certain  districts  of  New 
England  as  a  second  crop  among  onions,  and  probably  a  great 
deal  of  the  accumulated  capital  of  the  farmers  of  the  island  of 
Rhode  Island  has  been  derived  from  this  double  cultivation. 
Latterly,  the  injury  of  the  onion  crop  by  the  maggot  has 
greatly  lessened  the  extent  of  their  growth,  and  the  consequent 
production  of  carrots.  The  custom  in  Rhode  Island  is,  to  plant 
the  onions  at  regular  intervals  in  narrow  rows,  planting  a  few  car- 
rot seeds  between  each  two  plants  of  every  row.  After  the  onion 
crop  is  taken  ofF  the  carrot  has  all  the  time  that  it  requires  to 
make  a  handsome  growth  j  but,  owing  to  the  fact  that  the  carrots 


ROOT    CROPS.  275 

grow  in  bunches  together  and  are  not  thinned,  and  that  the  land 
is  generally  only  cultivated  to  a  slight  depth,  the  produce  is  much 
less  than  it  is  where  they  have  a  proper  depth  of  soil,  and  stand 
singly  so  that  each  plant  may  grow  to  its  full  size.  One  carrot, 
two  inches  in  diameter  at  the  top  and  fifteen  inches  long,  contains 
a  great  deal  more  substance  than  do  four  carrots  an  inch  in  diam- 
eter and  only  five  inches  long. 

The  variety  of  carrot  that  it  is  best  to  raise,  taking  into  view 
both  its  quality  for  feeding  and  the  efi'ect  of  its  coloring  matter  on 
the  product  of  the  dairy,  is  the  Long  Orange.  The  White  Bel- 
gian produces  more  largely,  but  is  inferior  for  use  ;  while  the 
Crecy,  the  Horn,  and  the  Altringham,  though  richer  and  excel- 
lent for  the  table,  yield  less. 

MANGEL-WURZELS. 

The  mangel  is  the  king  of  the  root  crops.  The  yield  per 
acre  is  larger,  under  favorable  circumstances,  than  that  of  any 
other  root  j  the  quality  is  much  better  than  that  of  the  common 
turnip,  and  quite  as  good  as  that  of  carrots  or  rutabagas.  It  is 
only  exceeded  in  richness  by  the  potato  and  the  Jerusalem  arti- 
choke. The  amount  that  it  is  possible  to  produce  from  an  acre 
of  land  has  probably  never  been  definitely  ascertained,  for  there 
has  never  been  an  acre  grown  on  which  all  of  the  plants  were  so 
large  and  perfect  as  individual  plants  frequently  are. 

If  I  had  land  exactly  suited  to  the  cultivation  of  this  root,  and 
were  so  circumstanced  that  I  could  give  it  as  much  manure  as  it 
could  make  profitable  use  of,  and  could  give  the  land  and  the 
plants  in  all  respects  the  fullest  opportunity  to  do  their  best,  the 
limit  ot  my  m.odest  ambition  would  be  two  thousand  bushels  per 
acre,  or  fifty  tons  of  roots. 

To  descend  from  the  possible  to  the  actual,  instances  are  nu- 
merous of  the  production  of  from  ten  to  thirteen  hundred  bushels 
per  acre  ;  and  there  is  no  crop  that  is  grown  which,  in  proportion 
to  the  amount  of  labor  required  for  its  production,  is  so  profitable 
as  this.      Three  hundred  and  forty-one  pounds  of  mangels  are 


276  HANDY-BOOK    OF    UUSBANDRT. 

equal  in  feeding  value  to  one  hundred  pounds  of  the  best  meadow 
ha\ ,  and  eight  and  a  half  tons  from  an  acre  of  land  have  the  same 
actual  nutritive  value,  as  proven  by  experiment,  as  have  two  and 
a  half  tons  of  hav,  which  is  a  remarkably  good  yield  from  an  acre 
of  excellent  grass  land,  laid  down  with  much  expense,  and  its 
crop  harvested  and  stored  with  care.  Of  course  the  labor  required 
for  the  production  of  the  mangel  crop  is  larger,  area  for  area,  than 
is  required  for  the  hav  crop, — \cry  much  larger, — but  it  bears  no 
proportion  to  its  excessive  superioritv  in  feeding  value. 

There  are  two  varieties  of  mangel  that  are  grown  quite  largely, 
and  it  is  still  questionable  which,  if  cither,  is  superior  to  the  other. 
These  are  the  Long  Red,  and  the  Yellow  or  Orange  Globe, — 
the  former  growing  chieflv  out  of  the  ground,  often  to  a  length  of 
eighteen  or  twenty  inches,  and  sometimes  even  more,  and  having 
a  circumference  nearly  equal  to  its  length.  The  Yellow  Globe 
is  almost  a  perfect  sphere,  and  has  been  grown  to  a  diameter  of 
thirteen  inches. 

The  crop  requires  the  whole  growing  season  for  its  perfection, 
and  the  seed  should  be  sown  as  early  in  spring  as  the  danger  of 
late  frosts  will  allow.  Fresh  seed  germinates  readily,  and  it  prob- 
ably would  not  be  safe  to  plant,  in  the  latitude  of  New  York, 
much  earlier  than  the  loth  of  May.  The  preparation  of  the  land 
should  be  the  perfection  of  all  that  has  been  described  in  the  early 
part  of  this  chapter.  Depth  of  thorough  cultivation,  completeness 
of  drainage,  and  the  richest  possible  manuring,  are  all  necessary  to 
the  best  results.  The  crop  may  be  grown  cither  on  the  flat  or  on 
ridges.  The  rows  should  be  at  least  thirty  inches  apart  (many 
consider  three  feet  none  too  much),  and  the  plants  should  stand 
twelve,  or,  better,  fifteen  inches  asunder  in  the  rows.  The  dis- 
tance between  the  rows,  and  the  intervals  between  the  plants, 
should  be  regulated  according  to  the  richness  of  the  ground.  It 
is  desirable  that  during  the  latter  part  of  the  season  the  entire  sur- 
face should  be  covered  by  the  leaves  of  the  crop,  and  especially 
desirable  that  these  leaves  should  not  crowd  each  other  by  reason 
of  too  narrow  intervals. 

Mangels  may  be  grown  by  planting  the  seed  where  the  crop  is 


ROOT    CROPS.  277 

to  stand,  or  by  transplanting.  After  several  years  of  experiment, 
I  am  induced  to  recommend  the  system  of  transplanting.  The 
plants  may  be  grown  in  the  seed-bed  to  a  considerable  size  ; — in 
fact,  it  is  better  not  to  remove  them  until  the  roots  are,  on  the 
average,  as  thick  as  one's  thumb,  or  even  an  inch  in  diameter. 
This  will  bring  the  removal  to  so  late  a  period  that  the  ground  on 
which  they  are  to  grow  may  be  thoroughly  cultivated  and  cleaned 
of  weeds,  so  that  a  single  hand-hoeing,  one  horse-hoeing,  and  one 
thorough  cultivation  between  the  rows  with  the  one-horse  steel  sub- 
soilplow  will  be  all  that  the  plant  requires.  If  the  seed  is  sown 
in  place,  it  should  be  sown  thickly  by  a  seed-drill,  say  at  the  rate 
of  six  pounds  to  the  acre  ;  for,  in  view  of  the  occasional  defective 
germination  of  the  seed,  it  is  best  to  secure  one's  self  against  the 
possibility  of  loss  from  this  source, — the  cost  of  the  extra  seed 
being  a  slight  insurance  as  compared  with  the  general  result.  The 
rows  should  he  kept  thoroughly  clean,  and  the  plants  slightly 
thinned  out,  that  is,  so  that  only  one  shall  stand  within  the  space 
of  an  inch.  As  soon  as  the  fleshy  leaf  commences  to  show  itself, 
and  at  about  the  third  hoeing,  the  rows  should  be  thinned  to  the 
intervals  recommended  above,  and  every  weed,  however  small, 
should  be  carefully  taken  out.  After  this  time  about  the  same 
cultivation  will  be  required  that  is  necessary  for  the  transplanted 
crop.  In  transplanting,  the  following  plan  will  be  found  safe, 
economical,  and  satisfactory.  The  land  having  been  put  in  a 
good  state  of  preparation  and  thoroughly  cleared  of  weeds,  scarify 
the  surface  with  a  cultivator,  and  pass  a  roller  over  it  to  crush 
such  lumps  as  may  remain,  and  then  rake  the  field  by  hand  with 
common  wooden  hay-rakes.  The  first  operation  is  the  marking 
of  the  lines,  and  I  have  found  that  this  may  be  cheaply  and  rapidly 
done  by  the  use  of  a  cord  (common  tarred  spun  yarn  is  as  good  as 
any  thing),  long  enough  to  reach  from  one  side  of  the  field  to  the 
other.  Let  one  man  hold  each  end  of  the  line,  standing  at  oppo- 
site sides  of  the  field  and  near  to  one  side,  drawing  the  line  per- 
fectly straight,  laying  it  in  the  position  intended  for  the  first  row, 
and  securing  the  ends  by  stakes  pressed  into  the  ground.  Let 
them  now  walk  toward  each  other,  placing  the  whole  length  of 


278  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

the  foot  upon  the  line  at  each  step.  When  they  reach  the  middle 
they  return  rapidly  to  the  end,  and,  each  being  provided  with  a 
gauge  marking  the  distance,  move  the  line  to  its  second  position 
and  walk  over  it  as  before, — proceeding  in  this  manner  until  the 
whole  field,  or  so  much  of  it  as  can  be  planted  in  one  day,  is 
marked  out.  The  indentation  made  in  the  ground  by  the  line 
under  the  foot  will  be  clear  and  sufficient  for  the  purpose.  This 
plan  has  the  advantage  of  being  nearly  as  rapid  as  marking  out  by 
the  plow,  and  of  making  perfectlv  straight  lines  at  absolutelv  uni- 
form distances.  The  whole  cost  of  the  operation  detailed  need 
not  exceed  two  dollars  per  acre,  including  the  scarifying,  rolling, 
and  raking  ; — and  the  straightness  of  the  rows  and  the  finely  com- 
minuted condition  of  the  ground  will  amplv  compensate  for  this 
in  subsequent  cultivation  ;  while  the  appearance  of  the  crop  will 
be  much  more  satisfactory  than  if  the  lines  were  not  perfectly 
straight. 

Transplanting  is  regarded  by  those  who  are  not  accustomed  to 
it  as  a  great  bugbear  ;  and  the  objection  that  is  most  frequently 
raised  to  this  system  of  cultivating  roots  is  based  on  the  cost  of 
the  operation.  Until  a  little  experience  is  gained,  the  objection 
has  some  value  ;  but  as  soon  as  one  is  accustomed  to  the  use  of 
the  dibber,  it  will  be  found  that  the  labor  of  setting  out  an  acre  of 
plants  is  less  than  that  of  weeding  a  sowed  crop  the  first  time, 
or  of  thinning  out  in  the  second  hoeing ;  while  the  effect  of 
the  transplanting  on  the  roots  is  most  beneficial,  and  the  crop 
produced  will  be  enough  larger  than  is  possible  by  the  other  pro- 
cess to  fully  repay  the  cost. 

In  transplanting  not  only  mangels,  but  turnips,  cabbages,  and, 
indeed,  all  plants,  the  work  can  in  no  way  be  done  so  rapidly  and 
so  well  as  by  the  use  of  the  dibber,  which  is  a  stick  about  a  foot 
long  and  an  inch  in  diameter,  having  an  iron-shod  point.  This 
tool  may  be  made  by  any  blacksmith,  and  should  find  a  place  on 
all  farms  where  roots  are  grown.  It  is  universally  used  by  the 
market  gardeners  in  the  vicinity  of  New  York  ;  and  the  rapidity 
with  which  its  work  is  accomplished  in  the  hands  of  a  skillful 
man  is  truly  remarkable.      My  foreman,  who  has  had  ten  years' 


ROOT    CROPS.  279 

experience  in  market  gardening,  can,  with  a  boy  to  drop  them, 
set  out  nine  thousand  plants  in  a  day,  and  it  is  rarely  that  a  single 
plant  fails. 

The  field  being  ready,  the  plants  should  now  be  drawn  from 
the  seed-bed,  the  largest  being;  selected  first.  The  crown  of  the 
plant  being  held  in  the  hand,  the  leaves  should  be  cut  off  about 
six  inches  above  the  crown,  and  the  point  of  the  tap-root  a  little 
below  the  swelling.  The  plants  should  be  stacked  up  so  that  the 
leaves  will  all  lie  in  one  direction,  and  should  be  covered  from  the 
rays  of  the  sun.  Each  planter  should  be  preceded  by  a  boy  carry- 
ing a  basket  of  plants,  which  he  drops  down  across  the  line  with 
the  tops  toward  the  left  hand  of  the  planter,  who  follows  him. 
The  latter,  bending  his  back  for  his  day's  work,  picks  up  the  plant 
with  his  left  hand,  makes  a  hole  with  the  dibber,  sets  the  root 
in  about  half  an  inch  below  the  crown,  and  by  a  peculiar  twisting 
thrust  of  the  dibber  compacts  the  earth  about  the  root.  If  there 
are  men  enough,  one  should  be  detailed  to  follow  each  two  or 
three  planters,  pressing  lightly  with  his  foot  over  the  hole  left 
by  the  dibber,  so  as  to  compact  the  earth  still  more  around  the 
newly-set  plant,  and  the  operation  is  done.  It  is  better,  of  course, 
to  select  cloudy  or  damp  weather  for  this  work  ;  and  it  should 
never  be  performed  during  a  drought,  if  there  is  a  hope  of  rain 
within  a  week.  The  cutting  off  of  the  leaves,  as  it  very  much 
reduces  the  evaporation  of  water  by  the  plant,  enables  it  to 
remain  nearly  dormant  until  its  newly-formed  roots  have  taken 
hold  upon  the  soil.  For  ten  days  or  two  weeks  after  trans- 
planting, but  little  evidence  of  growth  can  be  seen  ;  but  from 
that  time  on  the  growth  is  rapid  and  uniform  ;  so  that,  if  the 
land  is  in  good  condition  and  the  plants  all  good,  there  will  be 
an  equality  of  appearance  over  the  whole  field  that  cannot  be 
equaled  by  the  most  successful  cultivation  by  means  of  seed 
planting.  If  the  dryness  of  the  ground  is  very  great,  and  it 
is  not  deemed  advisable  to  wait  for  a  rain,  the  following  operation 
will  be  found  beneficial :  Take  equal  parts  of  garden  loam  and 
cow-dung,  mixing,  if  convenient,  a  little  guano  or  superphosphate 
of  lime  with  the  mass,  and   make    it   into  a  semi-fluid   paste  with 


280  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

water.  Into  this  dip  each  handful  of  roots,  as  thev  are  trimmed, 
on  being  first  taken  from  the  bed.  So  treated,  mangels,  cabbages, 
and,  probably,  rutabagas,  can  be  set  out  even  in  the  drvest 
weather  with  success  -,  and  in  anv  case  this  addition  of  a  rich 
fertilizer  at  the  point  at  which  the  new  roots  are  to  seek  their  first 
food  will  be  found  advantageous. 

The  process  of  growth  of  the  mangel,  and  probably  of  all  root 
crops,  is  about  as  follows: — 

During  the  early  stages  the  energies  of  the  plant  are  devoted 
chiefly  to  the  forming  of  leaves  ;  and,  even  after  these  have 
attained  sufficient  size  to  absorb  atmospheric  matter,  the  growth 
is  confined  chiefly  to  their  extension.  Later  in  the  season,  by  the 
transformation  of  the  contents  of  the  cells  of  the  lea\es,  these 
contents,  again  becoming  soluble,  pass  down  and  increase  the  bulk 
of  the  root.  Thus  we  see  at  harvest  time  that  a  large  proportion 
of  the  leaves  of  the  crop  have  withered  and  fallen  away.  It  is  the 
erroneous  custom,  in  many  districts,  to  forestall  this  withering  by 
stripping  them  off,  and  using  them  for  cattle  food.  It  is  hardly 
necessary  to  say  that  this  custom  results  in  great  detriment  to 
the  crop,  as  the  roots  are  thus  robbed  of  a  large  part  of  the 
matter  which  it  is  the  design  of  nature  to  store  in  them  for  winter 
use  or  for  the  next  season's  seed-growing.  The  crop  should  be 
left  entirely  untouched  after  the  leaves  have  covered  the  ground 
until  harvest  time,  which  should  be  before  any  frost  severe  enough 
to  seriously  affect  the  roots  themselves.  Early  frosts  have  but 
slight  effect,  even  on  the  leaves,  and  so  long  as  the  ground  is  well 
shaded  from  the  morning  sun,  a  slight  freezing  of  the  roots  does 
no  harm,  as  the  frost  will  be  withdrawn  bv  the  gradually  increas- 
ing heat  of  the  air,  before  the  cuticle  is  struck  by  the  direct  rays 
of  the  sun. 

In  harvesting  mangels,  the  leaves  should  be  twisted  or  torn  off 
by  hand,  and  not  cut  off  by  a  knife, — it  having  been  found  that 
cutting  induces  early  decay.  As  the  root  grows  chiefly  above 
ground,  and  is  rather  smoothly  rounded  even  under  the  surface 
of  the  earth,  it  is  not  necessary  to  trim  off  the  rootlets,  which 
are  of  but  very  little  amount.     As  the  roots  are  stripped  they 


ROOT    CROPS.  281 

should  be  laid  on  the  row,  or,  at  most,  each  three  rows 
should  be  laid  on  the  line  of  the  middle  one,  the  leaves  being 
deposited  in  the  intervening  spaces.  They  should  be  left  in  this 
situation  until  they  become  thoroughly  dry,  a  slight  wilting  being 
beneficial.  While  turnips  and  carrots  mav  be  thrown  together  in 
heaps,  or  even  thrown  into  carts,  mangels  require  to  be  handled 
in  the  most  careful  and  delicate  way,  for  a  slight  abrasion  of 
the  skin  hastens  decay.  They  should  be  laid  with  care  into 
baskets,  and  emptied  thence  with  equal  care  into  carts,  from 
which  they  should  be  subsequently  removed  by  hand,  and  not 
dumped.  As  the  work  of  this  season  is  generally  pressing,  and  as 
it  is  not  well  to  put  roots  into  warm  winter  quarters  until  the 
weather  becomes  permanently  colder,  it  is  a  good  plan  to  stack 
mangels  in  the  held,  in  heaps  containing  from  ten  to  twenty  bush- 
els, covering  them  first  u'ith  leaves  and  then  with  a  little  earth,  to 
secure  them  against  frost  ;  but  before  the  weather  becomes  cold 
enough  to  penetrate  this  thin  covering  they  should  be  removed  to 
the  cellar,  or  stowed  away  in  pits  or  banks  where  thev  may 
be  safely  left  even  until  May.  Mangels,  as  well  as  other  roots, 
may  be  stored  in  the  field  in  either  of  two  ways.  One  plan  is,  to 
build  them  up  compactly  in  heaps  about  five  feet  wide,  and  as  long 
as  the  quantity  to  be  stored  makes  necessary.  Thev  should  be 
drawn  together  to  a  ridge  at  the  top,  and  at  intervals  of  about  ten 
feet  along  this  ridge  trusses  of  straw  should  be  built  in,  projecting 
about  two  feet  above  it.  The  whole  heap  should  then  be  covered 
about  six  inches  thick  with  straw,  (long  straw  running  up  and  down 
the  sides  is  best,)  and  later,  the  whole  should  be  covered  a  foot 
thick  with  earth,  leaving  only  the  trusses  sticking  out,  for  ventila- 
tion, l^he  earth  should  be  taken  from  a  trench  dug  completely 
around  the  heap,  and  a  sufficient  drain  should  lead  away  from  this. 
Probably  it  would  be  best  to  so  regulate  the  size  of  the  heaps,  that 
when  one  is  opened  its  entire  contents  can  be  put  into  the  root- 
cellar  at  once.  If  this  is  not  done,  the  end  of  the  heap  that  is 
left  when  a  part  of  the  roots  are  removed  must  be  covered  as 
above  directed. 

The  other  plan,  which  we  think  preferable  to  the  foregoing,  is 


282  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

to  Store  the  roots  in  a  trench  in  the  ground,  three  feet  deep  and 
four  feet  wide.  Commence  by  building  up  a  tier  of  roots  entirely 
across  one  end  of  the  trench,  and  extending  back  two  teet  from 
the  end,  sprinkling  a  little  fine  earth  or  sand  among  the  la\  ers  to 
exclude  the  air.  After  this  tier  is  built  to  the  top,  commence  a 
second  one,  six  inches  from  the  first  ;  and,  as  vou  build  up,  fill 
the  space  between  the  two  with  earth.  Proceed  in  this  manner, 
laying  up  successive  tiers,  until  the  trench  is  filled.  Then  cover 
the  whole  with  a  thin  layer  of  straw,  to  be  increased  gradually  in 
thickness  as  the  weather  becomes  colder.  After  the  first  six 
inches  of  straw  are  put  on,  there  is  more  to  be  feared  from  too 
great  heat  than  from  frost  ;  although,  after  the  winter  has  fairly 
set  in,  the  covering  (being  beaten  down  by  rain  and  snow)  should 
be  at  least  ten  or  twelve  inches  thick.  Roots  stored  in  this  way 
may  be  taken  out  as  wanted,  (one  tier  at  a  time,)  and  usually  keep 
better  than  in  over-ground  ridges.  Of  course  the  ground  must  be 
naturally  dry  at  all  seasons,  for  the  whole  depth  of  the  trench,  or 
it  must  be  artificially  drained. 

The  same  caution  against  too  rapid  covering  should  be  used  in 
the  case  of  the  ridge  system,  and  in  no  case  should  corn-stalks  be 
used  for  covering,  as  these  are  very  apt  to  decay  and  communi- 
cate decay  to  the  roots. 

PARSNIPS. 

Parsnips  can  hardly  be  regarded  in  this  country  as  a  farm  crop  ; 
for,  while  they  are  excellent  for  feeding  and  their  productiveness 
is  bountiful,  the  labor  of  digging  the  crop  is  serious,  and,  either  in 
the  autumn  or  in  the  spring,  is  likely  to  interfere  with  other  opera- 
tions. At  the  same  time,  these  roots  possess  the  great  advantage 
of  remaining  in  the  ground  where  they  are  grown  without  protec- 
tion during  the  severest  winter,  coming  out  in  perfect  condition  at 
any  time  before  their  second  season's  growth  has  commenced  in 
the  spring.  They  should  be  planted,  and  cultivated  in  all  respects, 
as  has  been  directed  for  carrots, — sa\e  that  the  intervals  between 
the  plants  in  the  rows  should  not  be  less  than  eight  inches. 


CHAPTER    XII. 


FORAGE    CROPS. 


In  its  widest  sense,  the  term  forage  crops  applies  to  all  herba- 
ceous plants  which  are  used  as  food  for  domestic  animals.  Such 
grasses,  however,  as  are  chiefly  grown  for  hay,  are  so  familiar 
to  all  farmers,  that  in  a  book  of  the  character  ot  this'  they  may 
well  give  place  to  other  matters  about  which  information  is  now 
more  generally  sought,  and  I  shall  confine  my  attention  mainly  to 
such  plants  as  are  grown  for  green  fodder, — whether  for  a  com- 
plete system  of  "  soiling,"  or  for  an  occasional  feed  where 
pastures  are  not  reliable. 

The  great  crops  for  these  purposes  in  this  country,  are  :  Indian 
Corn  -,  Sorghum,  or  Chinese  Sugar-Cane  j  Clover  ;  Oats  ;  Rye  ; 
and  Millet. 

"  Sowed  Corn  "  is  familiar  to  all  good  farmers,  and  all  who 
have  grown  it  under  favorable  circumstances,  will  concede  that  it 
produces  much  more  food  on  a  given  area  than  any  other  grass 
that  we  have,  unless  it  be  its  congeiier^  Chinese  sugar-cane,  or 
sorghum.  It  has  the  drawback  of  not  being  very  early,  and  of 
not  withstanding  the  early  autumn  frosts  ;  it  must  be  planted  late 
enough  to  avoid  the  late  frosts  of  spring,  and  it  must  be  harvested 
before  the  weather  becomes  severe  in  the  fall.  But,  during  the 
intense  heats  of  summer,  it  grows  (on  rich  and  well-drained  land) 
as  nothing  else  will,  affording,  during  August  and  September,  a 
most  luxuriant  supply  of  the  very  best  food  for  all  animals  not 
kept  for  work.  Even  swine  will  thrive  on  it  as  they  will  on 
hardly  any  thing  else,  and  for  milch  cows  it  is  unequaled  by  any 
thing  with  which  we  are  acquainted. 


284  HAXDY-BOOK    OF    UUsBAMjliY. 

It  is  supposed  by  some  who  have  little  experience  in  the  matter 
that  green  corn  fodder  lessens  the  flow  ot  milk  and  reduces  the 
quantity  of  butter.  To  this  opinion  1  am  able  to  oppose  my  own 
experience  of  the  past  summer  (1869)  in  the  management  of  a 
herd  of  Jersey  cows.  The  quantity  of  milk  was  not  definitely 
ascertained,  but  it  was  easy  to  see  that  the  corn  increased  the 
flow  much  more  than  any  other  feed.  During  the  months  of 
June  and  Julv,  the  weekly  average  of  butter  was  ^^-^**^  lbs., 
— the  animals  being  copiously  supplied  with  the  best  of  clover, 
and  with  green  oats.  During  August  and  September,  when  we 
fed,  practically,  nothing  except  green  corn  fodder,  the  average 
per  week  was  SJ-fVo  ^^^-  ^^  butter,  of  even  a  finer  quality  and  a 
better  flavor. 

But  few  farmers,  even  of  those  who  are  in  the  yearly  habit  of 
planting  a  little  sowed  corn,  know  what  the  crop  is  capable  of. 
They  usually  prepare  a  small  corner  of  a  field  on  which  they  sow 
the  seed  broadcast^  and  harrow  it  In.  For  want  of  air  and  light, 
and  from  the  compactness  of  the  surface,  the  growth  has  a  pale 
and  sickly  look,  and  the  produce  is  very  much  less  than  it  should 
be. 

The  land  intended  for  this  use  should  be  the  richest  and  best 
prepare;;!  on  the  whole  farm,  and  the  seed  should  be  put  in  in 
drills  at  least  three  feet  apart^  so  that  they  may  be  thoroughly 
worked  out  with  the  cultivator,  or  horse-hoe,  at  least  three  times 
during  the  early  growth,  and  so  that  there  may  be  an  abundant 
circulation  of  air,  as  well  as  a  free  access  of  light.  It  is  a  common 
mistake,  when  the  corn  is  planted  in  drills,  to  put  in  so  little  seed 
that  the  stalks  grow  so  large  and  strong  that  they  will  be 
rejected  by  the  cattle,  only  the  leaves  being  consumed.  There 
should  be  at  least  forty  grains  to  the  foot  of  row.  This  will  take 
from  four  bushels  to  six  bushels  of  seed  to  the  acre,  but  the  result 
will  fully  justify  the  outlay,  as  the  corn  standing  so  close  in  the 
row  will  grow  fine  and  thick,  and  when  it  is  fed  out  the  whole 
stalk  will  be  consumed. 

The  variety  planted  is  important.  The  hard.  Northern  varie- 
ties of  corn,  which  do  not  produce  a  luxuriant  growth  of  stalk  and 


FOF.AGE    CROPS.  285 

leaf,  are  not  nearly  so  good  as  the  gourd-seed  varieties,  and  of  these 
the  large,  white.  Southern  corn  is  much  better  than  the  yellow 
corn  of  the  West. 

There  is  no  doubt  that  sweet  corn  is  better  for  forage  than  any 
other  variety,  as  even  the  stalk  contains  much  more  sugar  ;  but  the 
seed  is  costly,  and  is  sometimes  not  to  be  obtained  at  any  price, 
while  "  white  Southern  "  is  always  to  be  had  in  abundant  supply, 
and  it  is — in  the  absence  of  sweet  corn — good  enough  to  satisfy 
any  reasonable  man. 

My  crop  of  this  variety,  during  the  past  season, — planted  as 
above  described, — grew  to  a  height  of  six  feet,  and  occupied  the 
whole  area, — the  leaves  interlacing  between  the  rows, — as  com- 
pletely as  a  heavy  crop  of  any  grass  would  do,  I  had  no  means 
of  measuring  the  precise  quantity  grown,  but  I  am  confident  that 
it  would  have  made  eight  tons  per  acre,  dry  weighty  while  so  far  as 
I  could  judge  from  its  effect  when  fed  green,  as  compared  with 
green  grass,  it  would  have  been  fully  equal  to  eight  tons  of  the 
best  hay.  When  at  its  full  growth,  a  half  rod  of  it  was  ample 
for  the  daily  support  of  a  cow  in  full  milk,  while  young  stock  and 
swine  flourished  on  it  as  well  as  they  possibly  could  have  done  on 
any  other  feed. 

The  most  profitable  time  to  cut  corn  fodder,  whether  for  green 
feeding  or  for  curing,  is  when  one  half  of  the  plants  are  in  full 
tassel.  At  this  stage  the  nutritive  constituents  are  the  most  evenly 
distributed  throughout  all  parts  of  the  plants. 

The  best  means  of  curing  fodder  corn  is  a  question  that  has  long 
occupied  the  attention  of  thoughtful  farmers,  but  as  yet  no  satis- 
factory result  has  been  attained.  It  seems  almost  impossible  to 
thoroughly  dry  a  heavy  crop  on  the  ground  on  which  it  is  grown. 
I  have  tried  many  experiments,  and  the  best  one  I  have  thus  far 
been  able  to  hit  upon  has  been  to  spread  it  as  evenly  as  possible 
during  the  hottest  days  of  September,  occasionally  turning  it  by 
hand.  Even  after  two  weeks  of  such  exposure  it  contains  too 
much  water  for  safe  storing,  while  the  effect  of  dews  and  rains 
must  be  very  injurious.  Unless  some  means  of  drying  it  rapidly 
and  cheaply  by  artificial  heat  can  be  devised,  I  see  no  hope  of  being 


286  U  A  X  D  Y  -  B  0  0  K    OF    U  U  S  D  A  X  D  11  Y . 

able  to  store  it  properly  for  winter  use.  It  may  now  be  made  dry 
enough  to  be  put  up  in  small  stacks,  (butts  outward,)  but  this  is  far 
less  satisfactory  than  it  would  be  to  store  it  securely  in  a  tight 
barn  or  a  well-thatched,  large  stack. 

The  main  crop  should  be  planted  at  the  usual  time  of  planting 
corn  for  grain,  but,  so  far  as  it  is  desired  to  secure  a  succession  of 
fodder  during  the  pasturing  season,  it  may  be  advisable  to  plant  at 
intervals  until  the  middle  of  July. 

When  no  suitable  implement  is  available,  the  planting  may  be 
rapidly  done  by  hand,  but  I  have  found  a  grain  drill,  with  all  but 
the  middle  one  and  outer  two  teeth  removed,  (the  hopper  being 
arranged  to  dcliser  onlv  to  these  teeth,)  a  perfect  tool  for  the  pur- 
pose, planting  three  rows  at  a  time  as  fast  as  a  team  can  walk,  and 
planting  them  very  evenly.  After  planting,  it  is  well  to  pass  over 
the  ground  with  a  heavy  roller,  and  as  soon  as  the  rows  can  be 
distinguished  the  cultivator  should  be  set  at  work, — keeping  the 
ground  always  loose  and  light,  until  the  corn  is  so  thick  that  a 
horse  cannot  pass  through  it  without  material  injury. 

Sorghum  (or  Chinese  sugar-cane)  is  very  similar  to  Indian 
corn,  and,  as  it  contains  more  saccharine  matter,  it  may  be,  in 
those  parts  of  the  country  in  which  it  thrives,  even  better  as  a  green 
fodder  ;  but,  as  I  ha\'e  had  no  experience  with  its  growth  for  this 
purpose,  I  cannot  speak  positivelv  about  it. 

From  the  greater  amount  of  sugar  it  contains,  it  would  probably 
be  more  likely  to  sour  in  curing. 

Clover. — After  Indian  corn,  there  is  no  forage  crop  to  com- 
pare with  red  clover,  and  if  we  take  into  account  its  effect  on  the 
land,  it  should  be  placed  at  the  very  head  of  the  list,  for,  while 
Indian  corn  requires  rich  land  and  ample  manuring,  clover  is  the 
most  fertilizing  crop  that  is  grown,  and  may  justly  be  called  the 
poor  man's  manure. 

Wc  constantlv  meet  in  ao;ricultural  writings  the  statement  that 
clover  benefits  the  land  because  it  derives  most  of  its  constituents 
from   the  atmosphere.     This   is   an  absurd   reason,  because  every 


FORAGE    CROPS.  287 

plant  that  is  grown  has  precisely  the  same  peculiarity,  and  there 
is,  practically,  no  difference  among  all  of  our  crops  as  to  the  pro- 
portions in  which  they  take  their  constituents  from  the  soil  and 
from  the  atmosphere.  The  whole  reason  for  the  fertilizing  effect 
of  clover  has  never  been  satisfactorily  set  forth,  and  science  seems 
to  be  thus  far  at  fault  in  its  investigations  on  this  subject.  Some 
things,  however,  are  definitely  known  which  help  to  account  for 
the  manurial  value  of  this  crop. 

Clover  is  a  vervstronglv  tap-rooted  plant,  striking  its  feeders  deep 
into  the  earth  and  finding  nutriment  where  the  more  delicate  roots 
of  cereal  plants  would  be  unable  to  go.  The  proportion  which  the 
roots  bear  to  the  top  is  very  large,  and  on  the  removal  of  the  crop 
these  are  all  left  to  decompose  and  add  their  elements  to  the  soil. 
Not  only  does  the  soil  in  this  way  receive  a  large  amount  of  fer- 
tilizing matter  taken  from  the  atmosphere  or  developed  in  the  sub- 
soil, but  the  very  mechanical  structure  of  the  root  causes  a  fertile 
channel  to  be  left,  reaching  into  the  lower  soil,  and  easily  traversed 
by  the  roots  of  succeeding  plants,  while  the  carbonaceous  matter 
that  remains  after  the  decomposition  of  the  clover  root  increases 
the  porosity  of  the  soil  and  adds  very  much  to  its  ability  to  retain 
moisture. 

Lands  that  have  been  exhausted  by  long-continued  cropping, 
without  manure,  if  they  can  be  made  to  produce  even  a  small  crop 
of  clover,  may  be,  by  its  persistent  growth,  rapidly  and  cheaply 
restored  to  the  highest  fertility.  Not  only  will  the  growth  of 
clover  restore  the  carbonaceous  matter  that  repeated  cultivation 
has  burned  out  of  the  ground,  but  its  vigorous  and  deeply  penetrat- 
ing roots  extract  valuable  constituents  from  the  stubborn  sub- 
soil, and  these,  disseminated  through  the  entire  root,  remain,  on  its 
death  and  decay,  easily  available  for  the  uses  of  succeeding  crops. 

Thus  much  concerning  the  effect  of  this  crop  is  easily  compre- 
hended, but  there  are  other  facts  with  regard  to  it  that  are  not  so 
readily  explained.  For  instance,  it  is  amply  proven  that  when 
the  second  crop  is  fed  off  on  the  land,  the  manure  that  it  makes 
being  deposited  upon  it,  the  effect  on  the  succeeding  crop  is  less 
favorable  than  when  this  second  growth   is  allowed  to  ripen  into 

19 


288  HANDY -BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

seed,  and  the  whole  is  harvested  and  removed  from  the  land. 
This  branch  of  the  question  is  thoroughlv  discussed  in  a  paper  bv 
Dr.  Voelckcr,  which  is  published  hereu'ith  ;  but  it  seems  probable 
after  all, — so  great  is  the  manurial  influence  of  clover, — that  it 
must  actuallv  absorb  and  appropriate  into  its  own  substance  the 
nitrogen  of  the  atmosphere,  though  there  is  no  proof,  and  as  vet 
no  means  of  proving  that  this  process  actuallv  takes  place. 

The  paper  of  Dr.  Voelcker  referred  to  above,  is  copied  entire 
from  the  "  Journal  of  the  Roval  Agricultural  Societv  of  England." 

(This  paper  is  so  thoroughly  scientific  and  valuable,  and  is  so 
logically  arranged  from  beginning  to  end,  that  it  would  be  unfair 
to  its  author  to  attempt  any  condensation  of  it.  Everv  farmer 
who  cares  to  consider  the  reasons  for  what  he  does,  who  realizes 
the  importance  of  understanding  nature's  modes  of  operations,  will 
find  its  careful  perusal  to  be  of  the  greatest  value.  Those  who, 
from  lack  of  information  or  lack  of  time,  desire  onlv  to  know  the 
conclusions  to  which  it  leads,  will  find  them  conclusively  stated 
in  the  summary  with  which  it  closes.) 

"on  the  causes  of  the  benefits  of  clover  as  a  prepara- 
tory CROP  for   wheat.       by   dr.   AUGUSTUS  VOELCKER. 

"  Agricultural  chemists  inform  us  that,  in  order  to  maintain  the 
productive  powers  of  the  land  unimpaired,  we  must  restore  to  it 
the  phosphoric  acid,  potash,  nitrogen,  and  other  substances  which 
enter  into  the  composition  of  our  farm  crops  ;  the  constant  re- 
moval of  organic  and  inorganic  soil-constituents  bv  the  crops  usu- 
ally sold  off  the  farm,  leading,  as  is  well  known,  to  the  more  or  less 
rapid  deterioration  and  gradual  exhaustion  ot  the  land.  Even  the 
best  wheat  soils  of  this  and  other  countries  become  more  and 
more  impoverished,  and  sustain  a  loss  of  wheat-yielding  power, 
when  corn  crops  are  grown  in  too  rapid  succession  without 
manure.  Hence  the  universal  practice  of  manuring,  and  that, 
also,  of  consuming  oil-cake,  corn,  and  similar  purchased  food  on 
land  naturally  poor,  or  partially  exhausted  by  previous  cropping. 

"  While,  however,  it  holds  good,  as  a  general  rule,  that  no  soil 
can  be  cropped  for  anv  length  of  time  without  gradually  becoming 
more  and  more  infertile,  if  no  manure  be  applied  to  it,  or  if  the 
fertilizing  elements  removed  by  the  crops  grown  thereon  be   not, 


FORAGE    CROPS.  -  289 

bv  some  means  or  other,  restored,  it  is  nevertheless  a  fact  that  after 
a  heavy  crop  of  clover  carried  off  as  hav,  the  land,  far  from  being 
less  fertile  than  before,  is  peculiarlv  well  adapted,  even  without 
the  addition  of  manure,  to  bear  a  good  crop  of  wheat  in  the  fol- 
lowing year,  provided  the  season  be  favorable  to  its  growth.  This 
fact,  indeed,  is  so  well  known  that  many  farmers  justlv  regard  the 
growth  of  clover  as  one  of  the  best  preparatorv  operations  which 
the  land  can  undergo  in  order  to  its  producing  an  abundant  crop 
of  wheat  in  the  following  vear.  It  has  further  been  noticed  that 
clover  mown  twice  leaves  the  land  in  a  better  condition  as  regards 
its  wheat-producing  capabilities,  than  when  mown  once  for  hav, 
and  the  second  crop  fed  off  on  the  land  by  sheep  ;  for  notwiih- 
standing  that  in  the  latter  instance  the  fertilizing  elements  in  the 
clover  crop  are  in  part  restored  in  the  sheep  excrements,  yet,  con- 
trary to  expectation,  this  partial  restoration  of  the  elements  of 
fertility  to  the  land  has  not  the  effect  of  producing  more  or  better 
wheat  in  the  following  year  than  is  reaped  on  land  from  off  which 
the  whole  clover  crop  has  been  carried,  and  to  which  no  manure 
whatever  has  been  applied. 

"  Again,  in  the  opinion  of  several  good  practical  agriculturists 
with  whom  I  have  conversed  on  the  subject,  land,  whereon  clover 
has  been  grown  for  seed  in  the  preceding  vear,  yields  a  better  crop 
of  wheat  than  it  does  when  the  clover  is  mown  twice  for  hav,  or 
even  only  once,  and  afterward  fed  off  by  sheep.  Most  crops 
left  for  seed,  I  need  hardly  observe,  exhaust  the  land  far  more 
than  they  do  when  they  are  cut  down  at  an  earlier  stage  of  their 
growth  ;  hence  the  binding  clauses  in  most  farm  leases  which 
compel  the  tenant  not  to  grow  corn  crops  more  frequentlv  nor  to 
a  greater  extent  than  stipulated.  However,  m  the  case  of  clover 
grown  tor  seed,  we  have,  according  to  the  testimony  of  trust- 
worthy witnesses,  an  exception  to  a  law  generally  applicable  to 
most  other  crops. 

"  Whatever  may  be  the  true  explanation  of  the  apparent  anoma- 
lies connected  with  the  growth  and  chemical  history  of  the  clover 
plant,  the  facts  just  mentioned  having  been  noticed,  not  once  or 
twice  only,  or  by  a  solitary  observer,  but  repeatedly,  and  by  num- 
bers of  intelligent  farmers,  are  certainly  entitled  to  credit ;  and 
little  wisdom,  as  it  strikes  me,  is  displayed  by  calling  them  into 
question,  because  they  happen  to  contradict  the  prevailing  theorv, 
according  to  which  a  soil  is  said  to  become  more  or  less  impover- 
ished in  proportion  to  the  large  or  small  amount  of  organic  and 
mineral  soil-constituents  carried  off  in  the  produce. 

"  Agricultural  experiences  contradicting  prevailing  and,  it  may 


290  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

be,  generallv  current  theories,  are,  unless  I  am  much  mistaken,  of 
far  more  common  occurrence  than  mav  be  known  to  those  who 
are  either  naturally  unobser\ant  or  unacquainted  with  manv  of  the 
details  of  farmini^  operations.  Indeed,  an  interesting  and  instruc- 
tive treatise  might  be  written  on  the  apparent  anomalies  in  agri- 
culture, and  a  collection  of  trustworthy  facts  of  the  kind  alluded 
to  would  afford  valuable  hints  to  intelligent  farmers,  and  suggest 
matter  for  inquiry  to  chemists  and  others  engaged  in  scientific 
pursuits, 

"  To  me  it  seems  inconsistent  with  the  exercise  of  common 
sense,  and  opposed  alike  to  the  whole  tenor  of  a  well-regulated 
mind  and  the  progress  of  scientific  agriculture,  to  discuss  agricul- 
tural matters  in  the  dogmatic  spirit  too  often  so  painfullv  observa- 
ble when  people  meet  together  for  the  discussion  of  subjects 
relating  to  tarm  practice  ;  but  still  more  painful  is  the  spirit  which 
pervades  the  writings  of  certain  scientific  men  who  are  bold 
enough,  from  isolated  or  even  a  number  of  analogous  facts,  to 
frame  general  and  invariable  laws,  in  accordance  with  which  they 
propose  to  regulate  the  profession  of  agriculture.  That  there  are 
certain  fixed  laws  which  determine  the  growth  of  the  meanest  herb 
and  the  mightiest  forest  tree,  no  one  can  gainsav,  but  it  may  well 
be  doubted  whether  our  corn  or  forage  crops  would  remain  as 
flourishing  as  they  at  present  are,  if,  in  preference  to  some  pretty 
theory,  the  farmers  of  England  suddenly  threw  aside  their  past 
experience,  and  endeavored  to  grow  corn  in  accordance  with  a 
mathematical  formula  which  men  may  fancy  they  have  discovered, 
and  by  which  they  may  suppose  the  development  of  our  corn- 
crops  to  be  governed.  Even  great  men,  by  taking  too  general,  or, 
as  it  is  often  erringly  termed,  a  comprehensive  view  of  agricultural 
matters,  sometimes  totally  misrepresent  the  very  law  they  are 
endeavorino;  to  establish. 

^    .  .  . 

'*  The  patient  investigation  of  manv  of  these  details,  with  which 
those  only  are  perfectly  familiar  whose  daily  occupation  is  in  the 
field  or  in  the  feeding-stall,  is,  however,  often  rewarded  by  suc- 
cess. Mysteries  which  puzzle  the  minds  of  intelligent  farmers 
are  cleared  up,  the  influences  which  modify  a  general  rule  or  prac- 
tice in  farming  operations  are  clearly  recognized,  and  by  degrees 
principles  are  established,  which,  assigning  the  benefits  or  disad- 
vantages of  a  certain  course  of  proceeding  to  their  real  cause, 
must  ever  tend  to  confirm  the  experienced  in  good  practice, 
and  afford  valuable  hints  in  guiding  those  inexperienced  in  farm 
management. 

**  In  the  course  of  a  long  residence  in  a  purely  agricultural  dis- 


FORAGE    CROPS.  291 

trict,  I  have  often  been  struck  with  the  remarkably  healthy  appear- 
ance and  good  yield  of  wheat  on  land  from  which  a  heavy  crop 
of  clover  hay  was  obtained  in  the  preceding  year.  I  have  likewise 
had  frequent  opportunities  of  observing  that,  as  a  rule,  wheat 
grown  on  part  of  a  field  whereon  clover  has  been  twice  mown  for 
hay  is  better  than  the  produce  of  that  on  the  part  of  the  same  field 
on  which  the  clover  has  been  mown  only  once  for  hay,  and  after- 
ward fed  off  by  sheep.  These  observations,  extending  over  a 
number  of  years,  led  me  to  inquire  into  the  reasons  why  clover  is 
specially  well  fitted  to  prepare  land  for  wheat,  and  in  the  paper 
which  I  have  now  the  pleasure  of  laying  before  the  readers  of  the 
'Journal^  I  shall  endeavor,  as  the  result  of  my  experiments  on  the 
subject,  to  give  an  intelligible  explanation  of  the  fact  that  clover 
is  so  excellent  a  preparatory  crop  for  wheat  as  it  is  practically 
known  to  be. 

*•'  By  those  taking  a  superficial  view  of  the  subject,  it  may  be 
suggested  that  any  injury  likely  to  be  caused  by  the  removal  of  a 
certain  amount  of  fertilizing-  matter  is  altogether  insignificant,  and 
more  than  compensated  for  by  the  benefit  which  results  from  the 
abundant  growth  of  clover  roots  and  the  physical  improvement  in 
the  S'~>il  which  takes  place  in  their  decomposition.  Looking,  how- 
ever, more  closely  into  the  matter,  it  will  be  found  that,  in  a  good 
crop  of  clover  hay,  a  very  considerable  amount  of  both  mineral 
and  organic  substances  is  carried  off  the  land,  and  that  if  the  total 
amount  ot  such  constituents  in  a  crop  had  to  be  regarded  exclu- 
sively as  the  measure  tor  determining  the  relative  degrees  in  which 
different  farm-crops  exhaust  the  land,  clover  would  have  to  be 
described  as  about  the  most  exhausting  crop  in  the  entire  rotation. 

"  Clover-hay,  on  an  average,  and  in  round  numbers,  contains  in 
lOO  parts  : — 

Water '. r  7  o 

*NitiogL-nous  substances  (flesh-forming  matters) 156 

Non-nitiogt-nous  compounds 59  9 

Mineral  matter  (ash) 75 

lOO'O 
*  Containing  nitrogen 2'S 

"The  mineral  portion  or  ash  in  100  parts  of  clover-hay  con- 
sists of — • 

Phosphoric  acid 75 

Sulphuric  acid 4'3 

Carbonic  acid    1 8  -o 

Silica 30 


292 


II  A  N  D  Y  -  B  0  0  K    OF    U  U  S  li  A  N  D  R  Y . 


Lime 300 

M.ij;nL-sia ^'S 

Po;ash ao  o 

Soda,  chloride  of  sodium,  oxide  of  iron,  sand,  loss,  etc 8'7 


"  Let  us  suppose  the  land  to  have  yielded  4  tons  of  clover-hay 
per  acre.  According  to  the  preceding  data  we  find  that  such  a 
crop  includes  224  lbs.  of  nitrogen,  equal  to  272  lbs.  ot  ammonia, 
and  672  lbs.  of  mineral  matter  or  ash  constituents. 

"  In  672  lbs.  of  clover-ash  we  find — 

Phosphoric  acid    51^  lbs. 

Sulphuric  acid 29 

Carbonic  acid 1  -  1 

S  lica 20 

Lime 20 1 

M  ignesia 57 

Potash I34i 

Soda,  ciiloride  of  sodium,  oxide  of  iron,  sand,  etc 58 

672  lbs. 

"  Four  tons  of  clover-hav,  the  produce  of  one  acre,  thus  con- 
tain a  lartre  amount  of  nitrogen,  and  remove  from  the  soil  an  enor- 
mous  cjuantity  of  mineral  matters,  abounding  in  lime  and  potash, 
and  containing,  also,  a  good  deal  ot  phosphoric  acid. 

''  Leaving,  for  a  moment,  the  question  untouched,  whether  the 
nitrogen  contained  in  the  clover  is  derived  from  the  soil  or  from 
the  atmosphere,  or  partly  from  the  one  and  partly  from  the  other, 
no  question  can  arise  as  to  the  original  source  from  which  the 
mineral  matter  in  the  clover-produce  is  derived.  In  relation, 
therefore,  to  the  ash-constituents,  clover  must  be  regarded  as  one 
of  the  most  exhausting  crops  usually  cultivated  in  this  country. 
This  appears  strikingly  to  be  the  case  when  we  compare  the  pre- 
ceding figures  with  the  quantity  of  mineral  matters  which  an 
average  crop  of  wheat  removes  from  an  acre  of  land. 

"  The  grain  and  straw  of  wheat  contain,  in  round  numbers,  in 
100  parts  : — 


Water 

♦Nitrogenous  substances  (fli-sh-forming  matters). 

Nonnltroyon  ms  substances 

Mineral  matter  (ash) 


Containing  nitrogen. 


Grain  of  Wheat. 

Straw. 

150          .. 

160 

Ill 

40 

722 

•     7+-9 

17 

•          S' 

loo'o 

I  OO'O 

178 

•64 

FORAGE    CROPS. 


293 


"  The  ash  of  wheat  contains  in  lOO  parts  : — 


Phosphoric  acid      50"0 

Sulphuric  acid. 0-5 

Carbonic  acid 


Silic 


2-5 


Lime 35 

Magnesia I J  5 

Potash -    300 

Soda,  chloride  of  sodium,  oxide  of  iron,  sand,  etc  ...  .  20 


Straw. 
50 
27 

5  5 

20 

13-0 

4-8 


"  The  mean  produce  of  wheat  per  acre  may  be  estimated  at  25 
bushels,  which,  at  60  lbs.  per  bushel,  gives  1,500  lbs.  -,  and  as 
the  weight  of  the  straw  is  generally  twice  that  of  the  grain,  its 
produce  will  be  3,000  lbs.  According,  therefore,  to  the  preced- 
ing data,  there  will  be  carried  away  from  the  soil  : — 


In  1,500  lbs.  of  the  grain 
In  3,000  lbs.  of  the  straw. 


25  lbs.  of  mineral  food  (in  round  numbers). 
150  "  "  " 


Total 175  lbs. 

*'  On  the  average  of  the  analyses,  it  will  be  found  that  the  com- 
position of  these  175  lbs.  is  as  follows  : — 

In  the  Grain. 

Phosphoric  acid 12-5  lbs. 

Sulphuric  acid o-i   " 

Carbonic  acid  ....    

Silica 06  " 

Lime 0'9   " 

Magnesia 2'9   " 

Potash 7"5   " 

Soda,  chloride  of  sodium,  oxide  of  ) 

iron,  sand,  etc f       05   " 


2S  lbs. 


In  the  Straw. 

Total. 

7-5  lbs.    .. 
4-0    "      .. 

.    20.0  lbs 
41    " 

100-5   " 
82  «     ... 
30  "     . . . 
19s  «     ... 

.    lOI    I    " 

.     91  " 

.      5-9  " 

.     27 -o  « 

7  3"     •  •  • 

.       7-8   " 

150  lbs. 


175  lbs 


"  The  total  quantity  of  ash-constituents  carried  off  the  land  in 
an  average  crop  of  wheat  thus  amounts  to  only  175  lbs.  per  acre, 
while  a  good  crop  of  clover  removes  as  much  as  672  lbs. 

"  Nearly  two-thirds  of  the  total  amount  of  mineral  in  the  grain 
and  straw  of  one  acre  of  wheat  consists  of  silica,  ot  which  there 
is  an  ample  supply  in  almost  everv  soil.  The  restoration  of  silica, 
therefore,  need  not  trouble  us  in  anv  way,  especially  as  there  is 
not  a  single  instance  on  record  proving  that  silica,  even  in  a  solu- 
ble condition,  has  ever  been  applied  to  land  with  the  slightest 
advantage  to  corn  or  grass   crops,  which  are  rich  in  silica,  and 


294  II  ANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

which,  for  this  reason,  may  be  assumed  to  be  particularly  grateful 
for  a  supply  of  it  in  a  soluble  state.  Silica,  indeed,  if  at  all  capa- 
ble of  producing  a  beneficial  effect,  ought  to  be  useful  to  these 
crops,  either  by  strengthening  the  straw  or  stems  of  graminaceous 
plants,  or  otherwise  benefiting  them  •,  but  after  deducting  the 
amount  of  silica  from  the  total  amount  of  mineral  matters  in  the 
wheat  produce  from  one  acre,  only  a  trifling  quantity  of  other  and 
more  valuable  fertilizing  ash-constituent  of  plants  will  be  left. 
On  comparing  the  relative  amounts  of  phosphoric  acid  and  potash 
in  an  average  crop  of  wheat  and  a  good  crop  of  clover-hav,  it  will 
be  seen  that  l  acre  of  clover-hay  contains  as  much  phosphoric 
acid  as  ih  acres  of  wheat,  and  as  much  potash  as  the  produce  from 
5  acres  of  the  same  crop.  Clover  thus  unquestionably  removes 
from  the  land  very  much  more  mineral  matter  than  is  done  by 
wheat  ;  clover  carries  ofFthe  land  at  least  three  times  as  much  of 
the  more  valuable  mineral  constituents  as  that  abstracted  by  the 
wheat.  Wheat,  notwithstanding,  succeeds  remarkably  well  after 
clover. 

*'  Four  tons  of  clover-hay,  or  the  produce  of  an  acre,  contain, 
as  alreadv  stated,  224  lbs.  of  nitrogen,  or,  calculated  as  ammonia, 
272  lbs. 

"Assuming  the  grain  of  wheat  to  furnish  fjS  per  cent,  of 
nitrogen,  and  wheat-straw  '64  per  cent.,  and  assuming,  also,  that 
1,500  lbs.  of  corn  and  3,000  lbs.  of  straw  represent  the  average 
produce  per  acre,  there  will  be  in  the  grain  of  wheat  per  acre  26"j 
lbs.  of  nitrogen,  and  in  the  straw  I9'2  lbs.,  or  in  both  together  46 
lbs.  of  nitrogen  ;  in  round  numbers,  equal  to  about  55  lbs.  of 
ammonia,  which  is  onlv  one-fifth  the  quantity  of  nitrogen  in  the 
produce  of  an  acre  of  clover.  Wheat,  it  is  well  known,  is  speci- 
ally benefited  by  the  application  of  nitrogenous  manure,  and  as 
clover  carries  off  so  large  a  quantity  of  nitrogen,  it  is  natural  to 
expect  the  yield  of  wheat,  after  clover,  to  fall  short  of  what  the 
land  might  be  presumed  to  produce  without  manure,  before  a  crop 
of  clover  was  taken  from  it.  Experience,  however,  has  proved 
the  fallacy  of  this  presumption,  for  the  result  is  exactly  the  oppo- 
site, inasmuch  as  a  better  and  heavier  crop  of  wheat  is  produced 
than  without  the  intercalation  of  clover.  W^hat,  it  may  be  asked 
is  the  explanation  of  this  apparent  anomaly  .? 

*'  In  taking  up  this  inquiry,  I  was  led  to  pass  in  review  the  cele- 
brated and  highlv  important  experiments  undertaken  bv  Mr. 
Lawes  and  Dr.  Gilbert,  on  the  continued  growth  of  wheat  on  the 
same  soil  for  a  lorig  succession  of  vears,  and  to  examine,  likewise, 
carefully,  many  points,  to  which  attention   is  drawn,  by  the  same 


FORAGE    CROPS.  295 

authors,  in  their  memoirs  on  the  growth  of  red  clover  by  different 
manures,  and  on  the  Lois  Weedon  plan  of  growing  wheat. 
Abundant  and  most  convincing  evidence  is  supplied  by  these  inde- 
fatigable experimenters  that  the  wheat-producing  powers  of  a  soil 
are  not  increased  in  any  sensible  degree  by  the  liberal  supply  of 
all  the  mineral  matters  which  enter  into  the  composition  of  the 
ash  of  wheat,  and  that  the  abstraction  of  these  mineral  matters 
from  the  soil,  in  any  much  larger  proportions  than  possibly  can 
take  place  under  ordinary  cultivation,  in  nowise  aff'ects  the  yield 
of  wheat,  provided  there  be  at  the  same  time  a  liberal  supply  of 
available  nitrogen  within  the  soil  itself.  The  amount  of  the  latter 
therefore,  is  regarded  by  Messrs.  Lawes  and  Gilbert  as  the  measure 
of  the  increased  produce  of  grain  which  a  soil  furnishes. 

"  In  conformity  with  these  views,  the  farm.er,  when  he  wishes 
to  increase  the  yield  of  his  wheat,  finds  it  to  his  advantage  to  have 
recourse  toammoniacal  or  other  nitrogenous  manures,  and  depends 
more  or  less  entirely  upon  the  soil  for  the  supply  of  the  necessary 
mineral  or  ash-constituents  of  wheat,  having  found  such  a  supply 
to  be  amply  sufficient  for  his  requirements.  As  far,  therefore,  as 
the  removal  from  the  soil  of  a  large  amount  of  mineral  soil-con- 
stituents by  the  clover  crop  is  concerned,  the  fact,  viewed  in  the 
light  of  the  Rothamsted  experiments,  becomes  at  once  intelligible  ; 
for,  notwithstanding  the  abstraction  of  over  600  lbs.  of  mineral 
matter  by  a  crop  of  clover,  the  succeeding  wheat-crop  does  not 
suffer.  Inasmuch,  however,  as  we  have  seen  that  not  only  much 
mineral  matter  is  carried  off"  the  land  in  a  crop  of  clover,  but  also 
much  nitrogen,  we  might,  in  the  absence  of  direct  evidence  to  the 
contrary,  be  led  to  suspect  that  wheat  after  clover  would  not  be  a 
good  crop  ;   whereas  the  result  is  exactly  the  reverse. 

"  It  is  worthy  of  notice  that  nitrogenous  manures  which  have 
such  a  marked  and  beneficial  effect  upon  wheat  do  no  good,  but, 
in  certain  combinations,  in  some  seasons,  do  positive  harm  to 
clover.  Thus  Messrs.  Lawes  and  Gilbert,  in  a  series  of  experi- 
ments on  the  growth  of  red  clover  bv  different  manures,  obtained 
14  tons  of  fresh  green  produce,  equal  to  about  3I  tons  of  clover- 
hay  from  the  unmanured  portion  of  the  experimental  field  ;  and 
where  sulphates  of  potash,  soda,  and  magnesia,  or  sulphate  of  pot- 
ash and  superphosphate  of  lime  were  employed,  17  to  18  tons 
(equal  to  from  about  4^  to  nearly  5  tons  of  hay)  were  obtained. 
When  salts  of  ammonia  were  added  to  the  mineral  manures,  the 
produce  of  clover-hay  was,  upon  the  whole,  less  than  where  the 
mineral  manures  were  used  alone.  The  wheat  grown  after  the 
clover  on  the  unmanured  plot,  gave,  however,  29^  bushels  of  corn, 


29G  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

while  in  the  adjoining  field,  where  wheat  was  grown  after  wheat 
witluHit  manure,  onl\  15^  bushels  of  corn  per  acre  were  obtained. 
Messrs.  Lawes  and  Gilbert  notice  especially,  that  in  the  clover- 
crop  of  the  preceding  year  very  much  larger  quantities,  both  of 
mineral  matters  and  nitrogen,  were  taken  from  the  land  than  were 
removed  in  the  unmanurcd  wheat-crop  in  the  same  year,  in  the 
adjoining  field.  Notwithstanding  this,  the  soil  from  which  the 
clover  had  been  taken  was  in  a  condition  to  yield  14  bushels  more 
wheat  per  acre  than  that  upon  which  wheat  had  been  previously 
grown  ;  the  yield  of  wheat  after  clover,  in  these  experiments,  being 
fully  equal  to  that  in  another  field,  where  very  large  quantities  of 
manure  were  used. 

"Taking  "all  these  circumstances  into  account,  is  there  not  pre- 
sumptive evidence  that,  notwithstanding  the  removal  of  a  large 
amount  of  nitrogen  in  the  clover-hay,  an  abundant  store  of  availa- 
ble nitrogen  is  left  in  the  soil,  and,  also,  that  in  its  relations 
toward  nitrogen  in  the  soil,  clover  difters  essentially  from  wheat  ? 
The  results  of  our  experience  in  the  growth  of  the  two  crops 
appear  to  indicate,  that  whereas  the  growth  of  the  wheat  rapidly 
exhausts  the  land  of  its  available  nitrogen,  that  of  clover,  on  the 
contrary,  tends,  somehow  or  other,  to  accumulate  nitrogen  within 
the  soil  itself.  If  this  can  be  shown  to  be  the  case,  an  intelligible 
explanation  of  the  fact  that  clover  is  so  useful  as  a  preparatory 
crop  for  wheat  will  be  found  in  the  circumstance  that,  during  the 
growth  of  clover,  nitrogenous  food,  for  which  wheat  is  particularly 
grateful,  is  either  stored  up  or  rendered  available  in  the  soil. 

"  An  explanation,  however  plausible,  can  hardly  be  accepted  as 
correct  if  based  mainly  on  data  which,  although  highly  probable, 
are  not  proved  to  be  based  on  fact.  In  chemical  inquiries  espe- 
cially, nothing  must  betaken  for  granted  that  has  not  been  proved 
by  direct  experiment.  The  following  questions  naturally  suggest 
themselves  in  reference  to  this  subject  :  What  is  the  amount  of 
nitrogen  in  soils  of  different  characters  ?  What  is  the  amount, 
more  particularly  after  a  good  and  after  an  indifferent  crop  of 
clover  ?  Why  is  the  amount  of  nitrogen  in  soils  larger  after 
clover  than  after  wheat  and  other  crops  ?  Is  the  nitrogen  present 
in  a  condition  in  which  it  is  available  and  useful  to  wheat  ?  and 
lastly.  Are  there  any  other  circumstances,  apart  from  the  supply 
of  nitrogenous  matter  in  the  soil,  which  help  to  account  for  the 
beneficial  effects  of  clover  as  a  preparatory  crop  for  wheat  ? 

"  In  order  to  throw  some  light  on  these  questions,  and,  if  possi- 
ble, to  give  distinct  answers  to  at  least  some  of  them,  I,  years 
ago,  when  residing  at   Cirencester,  began  a  series  of  experiments, 


FORAGE    CROPS.  237 

and  more  recently  I  have  been  fortunate  enough  to  obtain  the  co- 
operation of  Mr.  Robert  Vallentine,  of  Leighton  Buzzard,  who 
kindly  undertook  to  supply  me  with  materials  for  my  analyses. 

"  My  first  experiments  were  made  on  a  thin  calcareous  clay 
soil,  resting  on  oolitic  limestone,  and  producing  generally  a  fair 
crop  of  red  cloyer.  The  clover-held  formed  the  slope  of  a  rather 
steep  hillock,  and  varied  much  in  depth.  At  the  top  of  tlie  hill, 
the  soil  became  very  stony  at  a  depth  of  4  inches,  so  that  it  could 
only  with  difficulty  be  excavated  to  a  depth  of  6  inches,  when  the 
bare  limestone  rock  made  its  appearance.  At  the  bottom  of  the 
field  the  soil  was  much  deeper,  and  the  clover  stronger  than  at  the 
upper  part.  On  the  brow  of  the  hill,  where  the  clover  appeared 
to  be  strong,  a  square  yard  was  measured  out  ;  and,  at  a  little  dis- 
tance off,  where  the  clover  was  very  bad,  a  second  square  yard 
was  measured  ;  in  both  plots  the  soil  being  taken  up  to  a  depth  of 
6  inches.  The  soil  where  the  clover  was  good  may  be  distinguished 
from  the  other  by  being  marked  as  No.  i,  and  that  where  it  was 
bad  as  No.  2. 

"  Clover-sot  I  No.  I,  {good  clover.) 

"  The  roots  having  first  been  shaken  out  to  free  them  as  much 
as  possible  from  soil,  were  then  washed  once  or  twice  with  cold 
distilled  water,  and,  after  having  been  dried  for  a  little  while  in  the 
sun,  were  weighed,  when  the  square  yard  produced  I  lb.  lo|  oz. 
of  cleaned  clover-roots  in  an  air-dried  state  ;  an  acre  of  land,  or 
4,840  square  yards,  accordingly  yielded,  in  a  depth  of  6  inches, 
3*44  tons,  or  3  J  tons  in  round  numbers,  of  clover-roots. 

"  Fully  dried  in  a  water-bath,  the  roots  were  found  to  contain 
altogether  4467  per  cent,  of  water,  and  on  being  burnt  in  a  plati- 
num capsule  yielded  6*089  of  ash.  A  portion  of  the  dried,  finely 
powdered,  and  well-mixed  roots  was  burned  with  soda-lime  in  a 
combustion-tube,  and  the  nitrogen  contained  in  the  roots  otherwise 
determined  in  the  usual  way.  Accordingly,  the  following  is  the 
general  composition  of  the  roots  from  soil  No.  i  : — 

Water 44'675 

♦Organic  matter 49  -3^ 

Mineral  matter 6-089 

loo'ooo 

*  Containing  nitrogen I'i97 

Equal  to  ammonia i"57S 

"Assuming  the  whole  field  to  have  produced  3  J  tons  of  clover- 


298  HAXDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

roots  per  acre,  there  will  be  99*636  lbs.,  or  in  round  numbers  lOO 
lbs.,  ot  nitrogen  in  the  clover-roots  from  i  acre  ;  or  about  twice 
as  much  nitrogen  as  is  present  in  the  average  produce  ot  an  acre 
of  wheat. 

'*  7  he  soil  which  had  been  separated  from  the  roots  was  passed 
through  a  sieve  to  deprive  it  of  anv  stones  it  might  contain.  It 
was  then  partiallv  dried,  and  the  nitrogen  in  it  determined  in  the 
usual  manner  by  combustion  with  soda-lime,  when  it  yielded  "313 
per  cent,  of  nitrogen,  equal  to  "38  of  ammonia,  in  one  combus- 
tion ;  and  '373  per  cent,  of  nitrogen,  equal  to  -46  of  ammonia,  in 
a  second  determination. 

'*  That  the  reader  may  have  some  idea  of  the  character  of  this 
soil,  it  may  be  stated  that  it  was  further  submitted  to  a  general 
analysis,  according  to  which  it  was  found  to  have  the  following 
composition  : — 

"  General    composition  of  Soil  No.   I,  {good  clover.) 

Moisture iS'yj 

♦Organic  matter 9  7* 

Oxides  of  iron  and  alumina '3-4 

Carbonate  of  lime 882 

Mjgne.--ia,  alitalies,  etc I  -2 

Insoluble  siliceous  matter  (chiefly  clay) 47  77 


•  Containing  nitrogen -jl} 

Equal  to  ammonia. ']8o 

*^  The  second  st^uare  yard  from  the  brow  of  the  hill  where  the 
clover  was  bad,  produced  13  ounces  of  air-dry  and  partiallv  clean 
roots,  or  I -75  tons  per  acre.  On  analysis  they  were  found  to 
have  the  following  composition  : — 

"  Clover-roots  Ko.  2,  [bad  clover.') 

Water 55'73* 

*Organic  matter .  .    39  408 

Mineral  matter  (ash) 4860 


•  Containing  nitrogen -791 

Equal  to  ammonia -901 

"  The  roots  on  the  spot  where  the  clover  was  very  bad  yielded 
only  31  lbs.  of  nitrogen  per  acre,  or  scarcely  one-third  of  the 
quantity  which  was  obtained  from  the  roots  where  the  clover  was 
good. 


roRAaE  CEOPS.  299 

"  The  soil  from  the  second  square  yard  on  analysis  was  found, 
when  freed  from  stones  by  sifting,  to  contain  in  lOO  parts  : — 

"  Composition  of  Soil  No.  2,  [had  clover.) 

Water .' 17-4 

♦Organic  matter 9^4 

Oxides  of  iron  and  alumina 1 1  89 

Carbonate  of  lime I4SO 

Magnesia,  alkalies,  etc ...  1'53 

Insoluble  silicious  matter 45'2'0 

loo'OO 

2d  determination. 

*  Containing  nitrogen '306      ...        -jSo 

Equal  to  ammonia '11°     "47° 

"  Both  portions  of  the  clover  soil  thus  contained  about  the  same 
percentage  of  organic  matter,  and  yielded  nearly  the  same  amount 
of  nitrogen. 

"  In  addition,  however,  to  the  nitrogen  in  the  clover-roots,  a 
good  deal  of  nitrogen,  in  the  shape  of  root-fibers,  decayed  leaves, 
and  similar  organic  matters,  was  disseminated  throughout  the  fine 
soil  in  which  it  occurred,  and  from  which  it  could  not  be  sepa- 
rated ;  but  unfortunately  I  neglected  to  weigh  the  soil  from  a 
square  yard,  and  am,  therefore,  unable  to  state  how  much  nitrogen 
per  acre  was  present  in  the  shape  of  small  root-fibers  and  other 
organic  matters.  Approximately,  the  quantity  might  be  obtained 
by  calculation  ;  but,  as  the  actual  weight  of  cultivated  soils  varies 
greatly,  I  abstain  from  making  such  a  calculation,  even  though  it 
might  be  done  with  propriety,  as  I  took  care  in  the  following  sea- 
son to  weigh  the  soil  of  different  parts  of  the  same  field, 

'*•  Before  mentioning  the  details  of  the  experiments  made  in  the 
next  season,  I  will  here  give  the  composition  of  the  ash  of  the 
partially  cleaned  clover-roots  : — 

"  Composition  of  Jsh  of  Clover-roots.,  [partially  cleaned.) 

Oxide  of  iron  and  alumina II  73 

Lime 1 8 '49 

Magnesia 3'°3 

Potash 6'88 

Soda    1*93 

Phosphoric  acid 3'6l 

Sulphuric  acid 2-24 

S jluble  silica 19-01 

Insoluble  siliceous  matter 24"83 

Carbonic  acid,  chlorine,  and  loss 8  "25 

lOO'OO 


300  HANDY-BOOK    OF    H  U  S  B  A  X  D  R  Y  . 

*■*■  This  ash  was  obtained  from  clover-roots,  which  yielded,  when 
perfectly  dry,  in  round  numbers,  8  per  cent,  of  ash.  Clover-roots 
washed  quite  clean,  and  separated  from  all  soil,  yield  about  5  per 
cent,  of  ash  ;  but  it  is  extremely  difficult  to  clean  a  large  quantity 
of  fibrous  roots  from  all  dirt,  and  the  preceding  analysis  distinctly 
shows  that  the  ash  of  the  clover-roots  analyzed  by  me  was 
mechanically  mixed  with  a  good  deal  of  fine  soil,  for  oxide  of  iron 
and  alumina  and  insoluble  silicious  matter  in  any  quantity  are  not 
normal  constituents  of  plant-ashes.  Making  allowance  for  soil- 
contamination,  the  ash  of  clover-roots,  it  will  be  noticed,  contains 
much  lime  and  potash,  as  well  as  an  appreciable  amount  of  phos- 
phoric and  sulphuric  acid.  On  the  decay  of  the  clover-roots,  these 
and  other  mineral  fertilizing  matters  arc  left  in  the  surface-soil  in 
a  readily  available  condition,  and  in  considerable  proportions  when 
the  clover  stands  well.  Although  a  crop  of  clover  removes  much 
mineral  matter  from  the  soil,  it  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  its 
roots  extract  from  the  land  soluble  mineral  fertilizing  matters, 
which,  on  the  decay  of  the  roots,  remain  in  the  bnd  in  a  prepared 
and  more  readily  available  form  than  that  in  which  they  originally 
occur.  The  benefits  arising  to  wheat  from  the  growth  of  clover 
may  thus  be  due  partly  to  this  preparation  and  concentration  of 
mineral  food  in  the  surface-soil. 

"  The  clover  on  the  hill-side  field  on  the  whole  turned  out  a 
very  good  crop  ;  and  as  the  plant  stood  the  winter  well,  and  this 
field  was  left  another  season  in  clover  without  being  plowed  up,  I 
availed  myself  of  the  opportunity  of  making,  during  the  following 
season,  a  number  of  experiments  similar  to  those  of  the  preceding 
year.  This  time,  however,  I  selected  for  examination  a  square 
yard  of  soil  from  a  spot  on  the  brow  of  the  hill  where  the  clover 
was  thin  and  the  soil  itself  stony  at  a  depth  of  4  inches  ;  and 
another  plot  of  one  square  yard  at  the  bottom  of  the  hill,  from  a 
place  where  the  clover  was  stronger  than  that  on  the  brow  of  the 
hill,  and  the  soil  at  a  depth  of  6  inches  contained  no  large  stones. 

"  Soil  N'o.   I  ( Clover  th'm)  on  the  broiv  of  the  hill. 

"The  roots  in  a  square  yard,  6  inches  deep,  when  picked  out 
by  hand  and  cleaned  as  much  as  possible,  weighed,  in  their  natural 
state,  2  lbs.  11  oz.  ;  and  when  dried  on  the  top  of  a  water-bath, 
for  the  purpo-se  of  getting  them  brittle  and  fit  for  reduction  into 
fine  powder,  I  lb.  12  oz.  31  grains.  In  this  state  they  were 
submitted,  as  before,  to  analysis,  when  they  yielded  in  1 00 
parts  : — 


PORAGE    CROPS.  301 

"  Composition  of  Clover-roots^  No.  i,  [from  brow  of  the  hill.) 

Moisture 4*  54 

*Organic  matter id-  5  3 

Mineral  matter 69' 13 

lOO'OO 

*  Containing  nitrogen '%i(> 

E^ual  to  ammonia '99I 

"  According  to  these  data  an  acre  of  land  will  yield  8  tons  12 
cvvts.  of  nearly  dry  clover-roots,  and  in  this  quantity  there  will  be 
about  66  lbs.  of  nitrogen. 

"  The  whole  of  the  soil  from  which  the  roots  had  been  picked 
out  was  passed  through  a  half-inch  sieve.  The  stones  left  in  the 
sieve  weighed  141  lbs.  ;  the  soil  which  passed  tnrough  weighing 
218  lbs. 

"  The  soil  was  next  dried  by  artificial  heat,  when  the  218  lbs. 
became  reduced  to  1 85*487  lbs, 

*'  In  this  partially  dried  state  it  contained — 

Moisture 4-21 

♦Organic  matter 9'78 

•j-Mineral  matter 86-oi 

loo'oo 

*  Containing  nitrogen 'jgl 

Equal  to  ammonia '475 

f  Including  phosphoric  acid '264 

"  I  also  determined  the  phosphoric  acid  in  the  ash  of  the  clover- 
roots.  Calculated  for  the  roots  in  a  nearly  dry  state,  the  phos- 
phoric acid  amounts  to  "287  per  cent. 

"  An  acre  of  soil,  according  to  the  data  furnished  by  the  six 
inches  on  the  spot  where  the  clover  was  thin,  produced  the  fol- 
lowing quantity  ot  nitrogen  : — 

Tons.  cwt.  lbs. 

In  the  fine  soil I  ii  33 

In  the  clover-roots o  o  66 

Total  quantity  of  nitrogen  per  acre i  II  qc> 

"The  organic  matter  in  an  acre  of  this  soil,  which  cannot  be 
picked  out  by  hand,  it  will  be  seen,  contains  an  enormous  quantity 
of  nitrogen  ;  and  although  probably  the  greater  part  of  the  roots 
and  other  remains  from  the  clover  crop  may  not  be  decomposed 
so    thoroughly  as   to   yield    nitrogenous    food    to    the   succeeding 


302  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

wheat-crop,  it  can  scarcely  be  doubted  that  a  considerable  quantity 
of  nitrogen  will  become  a\aiiable  by  the  time  the  wheat  is  sown, 
and  that  one  of  the  chief  reasons  wny  clover  benefits  the  succeed- 
ing wheat-crop  is  to  be  found  in  the  abundant  supply  of  available 
nitrogenous  food  furnished  by  the  decaying  clover-roots  and  leaves. 

*'  Clover- soil  Xo.  2  from  the  bottom  of  the  hi  11^  {good  clover.) 

*'  A  square  yard  of  the  soil  from  the  bottom  of  the  hill,  where 
the  clover  was  stronger  than  on  the  brow  of  the  hill,  produced  2 
lbs.  8  oz.  of  fresh  clover-roots,  or  i  lb.  1 1  oz.  47  grains  of  par- 
tially dried  roots,  61  lbs.  9  oz,  of  limestones,  and  239*96  lbs.  of 
nearly  dry  soil. 

"  The  partially  dried  roots  contained  : — 

Moisture 5'c6 

*Orga  nic  matter 3  '  '9+ 

Mineral  nutter 63-00 

lOO'OO 

*  Containing  nitrogen '804 

"  An  acre  of  this  soil,  6  inches  deep,  produced  3  tons  7  cwts. 
65  lbs.  of  clover-roots,  containing  61  lbs.  of  nitrogen — that  is, 
there  was  very  nearly  the  same  quantity  of  roots  and  nitrogen  in 
them  as  that  furnished  in  the  soil  from  the  brow  of  the  hill. 

"  The  roots,  moreover,  yielded  '365  per  cent,  of  phosphoric 
acid,  or,  calculated  per  acre,  27  lbs. 

"  In  the  partially  dried  soil  I  found — 

Moisture 4*7° 

♦Organic  matter 10-87 

■j-Mincral  matter S4-43 

loo-oo 

*  Containing  nitrogen -405 

Equal  to  ammonia     '491 

•f-  Including  phosphoric  acid -jii 

"According  to  these  determinations  an  acre  of  the  soil  from  the 
bottom  of  the  hill  contains — 

Tons.  cwts.  lbs. 

Nitrogen  in  the  organic  matter  of  the  soil  ...      2  2  o 

"  clover-roots  "  .  .  .      o  o  61 

Total  amount  of  nitrogen  per  acre.  . .  a  2  61 


FORAGE    CROPS.  303 

''  Compared  with  the  amount  of  nitrogen  in  the  soil  from  the 
brow  of  the  hill,  about  ii  cwt.  more  nitrogen  was  obtained  in  the 
soil  and  roots  from  the  bottom  of  the  hill  where  the  clover  was 
more  luxuriant. 

''  The  increased  amount  of  nitrogen  occurred  in  fine  root-fibers 
and  other  organic  matters  of  the  soil,  and  not  in  the  coarser  bits 
of  roots  which  were  picked  out  by  the  hand.  It  may  be  assumed 
that  the  finer  particles  of  organic  matter  are  more  readily  decom- 
posed than  the  coarser  roots  ;  and  as  there  was  a  larger  amount 
of  nitrogen  in  this  than  in  the  preceding  soil,  it  may  be  expected 
that  the  land  at  the  bottom  of  the  hill,  after  the  removal  of  the 
clover,  was  in  a  better  agricultural  condition  for  wheat  than  that 
on  the  brow  of  the  hill. 

"  Experiments  on  Clover-soils  from    Burcott   Lodge  Farm^  Leighton- 

Buzzard. 

*'  The  soils  for  the  next  experiments  were  kindly  supplied  to  me 
in  1866,  by  Mr.  Robert  Vallentine,  of  Burcott  Lodge,  who  also 
sent  me  some  notes  respecting  the  growth  and  yield  of  clover, 
hay,  and  seed  on  this  soil. 

"  Foreign  seed,  at  the  rate  of  12  lbs.  per  acre,  was  sown  with 
a  crop  of  wheat  which  yielded  5  quarters  per  acre  the  previous 
year. 

"  The  first  crop  of  clover  was  cut  down  on  the  25th  of  June, 
1866,  and  carried  on  June  30th.  The  weather  was  very  warm 
from  the  time  of  cutting  till  the  clover  was  carted,  the  ther- 
mometer standing  at  80°  Fahr.  every  day.  The  clover  was 
turned  in  the  swathe  on  the  second  day  after  it  was  cut  ;  on  the 
fourth  day  it  was  turned  over  and  put  into  small  heaps  of  about 
10  lbs.  each  ;  and  on  the  fifth  day  these  were  collected  into  larger 
cocks  and  then  stacked. 

''The  best  part  of  an  ii-acre  field  produced  nearly  3  tons  of 
clover-hay,  sun-dried,  per  acre  ;  the  whole  field  yielding  on  an 
average  2|-  tons  per  acre.  This  result  was  obtained  by  weighing 
the  stack  three  months  after  the  clover  was  carted.  The  second 
crop  was  on  21st  of  August  and  carried  on  the  27th,  the  weight 
being  nearly  30  cwts.  of  hay  per  acre.  Thus  the  two  cuttings 
produced  just  about  4  tons  of  clover-hay  per  acre. 

"The  ir  acres  were  divided   into  two  parts.       About  one-half 

was  mown  for  hay  a  second  time,  and  the  other  part  left  tor  seed. 

The  produce  of  the  second  half  of  the  ii-acre  field  was  cut  on 

the  8th  of  October,  and  carried  on  the  lOth.      It  yielded  in  round 

20 


304  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

numbers  3  cvvts.  of  clover-seed  per  acre,  the  season  being  verv 
unfavorable  for  clover-seed.  The  second  crop  ot  clover  mown 
for  hay  was  rather  too  ripe  and  just  beginning  to  show  seed. 

''A  square  foot  of  soil,  18  inches  deep,  was  dug  from  the 
second  portion  of  the  land  which  produced  the  clover-hay  and 
clover-seed. 

"  Soil  from  I  \-acre  field  tivice  mown  for  hay. 

"  The  upper  6  inches  of  soil,  I  foot  square,  contained  all  the 
main  roots  of  18  strong  plants  ;  the  next  6  inches  only  small  root- 
fibers  ;  and  in  the  third  section,  a  6-inch  slice  cut  down  at  a  depth 
of  12  inches  from  the  surface,  no  distinct  fibers  could  be  found. 
The  soil  was  almost  completelv  saturated  with  rain  when  it  was 
dug  up  on  the  13th  September,  1866  : — 

lbs. 

The  upper  6  inches  of  soil  I  foot  square  weighed 6o 

The  second  6  -  "  ««  6i 

The  third     6  "      '  «<  «  63 

"These  three  portions  of  one  foot  of  soil,  18  inches  deep,  were 
dried  nearly  completelv,  and  weighed  again  ;  when  the  first  6 
inches  weighed  51 1  lbs.  ;  the  second  6  inches,  51  lbs.  5  oz.  ;  and 
the  third  section,  54  lbs.  2  ozs. 

*'  The  first  6  inches  contained  3  lbs.  of  silicious  stones  (flints) 
which  were  rejected  in  preparing  a  sample  for  analysis  ;  in  the 
two  remaining  sections  there  were  no  large-sized  stones.  The 
soils  were  pounded  down  and  passed  through  a  wire  sieve. 

"The  three  layers  of  soil,  dried  and  reduced  to  powder,  were 
mixed  together,  and  a  prepared  average  sample,  when  submitted  to 
analysis,  yielded  the  following  results  : — 

Composition  of  Clover-soil^  1 8  inches  deep^  from  part  of  I  I  -acre 
field^  twice  mown  for  hay. 

C  Organic  matter 5-86 

•7^       Oxides  of  iron 6"83 

"       Alumina 7'12 

.5           Carbonate  of  lime 2- 1 3 

JJ  •£;  j  Magnesia 2'0i 

^  2    ]  Potash -67 

^  g      Soda     -08 

•S       Chloride  or  sodium -02 

3;    I  Phosphoric  acid •  1 8 

[_  Sulphuric  acid •!  7 


FORAGE    CROPS.  305 

f  Insoluble  siliceous  matter.  .  .  .74-61 

I  Consisting  of — Alumina 4-27 

I                                Lime  (in  a  state  of  silicate) 4-07 

■l^                                  Magnesia "46 

"o  <    I                                   Potash -19 

J         I                                  Soda -23 

[^                              Silica 65-29 


-Q  ■ 


99-68 

"  This  soil,  it  will  be  seen,  contained,  in  appreciable  quantities, 
not  only  potash  and  phosphoric  acid,  but  all  the  elements  of  fer- 
tility which  enter  into  the  composition  of  good  arable  land.  It 
may  be  brieflv  described  as  a  stiff  clay-soil,  containing  a  sufficiency 
of  lime,  potash,  and  phosphoric  acid  to  meet  all  the  requirements 
of  the  clover  crop.  Originally  rather  unproductive,  it  has  been 
much  improved  by  deep  culture  -,  by  being  smashed  up  into  rough 
clods  early  in  autumn,  and  bv  being  exposed  in  this  state  to  the 
crumbling  effects  of  the  air,  it  now  yields  good  corn  and  forage 
crops. 

"In  separate  portions  of  the  three  layers  of  soil,  the  proportions 
of  nitrogen  and  phosphoric  acid  contained  in  each  la\'er  ot  6  inches 
were  determined  and  found  to  be  as  follows  : — 

Soil  dried  at  ili"  Fahr. 
1st  6  inches.  2d  6  inches.  jj  6  inches. 

Percentage  of  phosphoric  acid "-49      .■•■      ''34      ....       -171 

Nitrogen    i6i      ....      "092      ....        06.). 

Equal  to  ammonia -198      ....      '112        ...        078 

^'  In  the  upper  6  inches,  as  will  be  seen,  the  percentage  of  both 
phosphoric  acid  and  nitrogen  was  larger  than  in  the  two  following 
layers  ;  \vhile  the  proportion  of  nitrogen  in  the  6  inches  of  surface 
soil  was  much  larger  than  in  the  next  6  inches  ;  and  in  the  "third 
section,  containing  no  visible  particles  of  root-fibers,  only  very 
little  nitrogen  occurred. 

"  In  their  natural  state  the  three  layers  of  soil  contained  : — 


Moisture 

Phosphoric  acid  .  .  . 

Nitrogen 

Equal  to  ammonia. 


1st  6  inches. 

id  6  inches. 

}d  6  inches. 

1716       . . 

.  .       18-24.       •■ 

.  .       1662 

•198    .  . 

•109    .  .  . 

•143 

■134    .. 

•075    .. 

•053 

•162    .. 

091     .. . 

•064 

lbs. 

lbs. 

lbs. 

6o 

.  ..          61 

...           63 

Weight  of  I  foot  square  of  soil. 

"  Calculated   per   acre,  the    absolute  weight   of   I    acre    of  this 
land,  6  inches  deep,  weighs  : — 


30G  HANDY-BOOK    OP    HUSBANDRY. 

lbs. 

Tint  6  inches 2,61  3,600 

Second      "        2,657,160 

Third       "        =,746,280 

'■'■  No  great  error,  therefore,  will  be  made  if  we  assume  in  the 
subsequent  calculations  that  6  inches  of  this  soil  weigh  2.',  millions 
of  pounds  per  acre. 

"  An  acre  of  land,  according  to  the  preceding  determinations, 
contains  : — 

1st  6  inches.  zd  6  inches.  jd  6  inches, 

lbs.  lbs.  lbs. 

Phosphoric  acid 4.95°      •  ■  •  •      2,725      ....      3,575 

Nitrogen 3,35°      ....      1.875      ••••      '>3^S 

Equal  to  ammonia 4,052      •  •  ■  •      -t'^lS      •  •  •  •      1,600 

"  The  proportion  of  phosphoric  acid  in  6  inches  of  surface 
soil,  it  will  be  seen,  amounted  to  about  two-tenths  per  cent.  ;  a 
proportion  of  the  whole  soil  so  small  that  it  may  appear  insufli- 
cient  for  the  production  of  a  good  corn-crop.  However,  when 
calculated  to  the  acre,  we  find  that  6  inches  of  surface  soil,  in  an 
acre  of  land,  actually  contain  over  2  tons  of  phosphoric  acid.  An 
average  crop  of  wheat,  assumed  to  be  25  bushels  of  grain,  at  60 
lbs.  per  bushel,  and  3,000  lbs.  of  straw,  removes  from  the  land  on 
which  it  is  g.  own  20  lbs.  of  phosphoric  acid.  The  clover-soil, 
analyzed  by  me,  consequently  contains  an  amount  of  phosphoric 
acid  in  a  depth  or  only  6  inches,  which  is  equal  to  thr.t  present  in 
2471  aserage  crops  ot  wheat  ;  or  supposing  that,  by  o;ood  culti\a 
tion  and  in  favorable  seasons,  the  average  ^•ield  of  wheat  could  be 
doubled,  and  50  bushels  of  grain  at  60  lbs.  a  bushel  and  6',000  lbs. 
of  straw  could  be  raised,  124  of  such  heavy  wheat-crops  would 
contain  no  more  phosphoric  acid  than  actually  occurred  in  6 
inches  of  this  clover-soil  per  acre. 

"  The  mere  presence  of  such  an  amount  of  phosphoric  acid  in 
a  soil,  however,  by  no  means  proves  its  sufficiency  for  the  produc- 
tion of  so  many  crops  of  wheat  ;  for,  in  the  first  place,  it  caimot 
be  shown  that  the  whole  of  the  phosphoric  acid  found  by  analysis 
occuis  in  the  soil  in  a  readily  available  combination;  and,  in  the 
second  place,  it  is  quite  certain  that  the  root-fibers  of  the  wheat- 
phint  cannot  reach  and  pick  up,  so  to  speak,  every  particle  of 
phosphoric  acid,  even  supposing  it  to  occur  in  the  soil  in  a  form 
most  conducive  to  ''ready  assimilation  by  the  plant." 

"  The  calculation  is  not  given  in  proof  of  a  conclusion  which 
would  be  manifestly  absurd,  but  simply  as  an  illustration  of  the 


FORAGE    CROPS.  307 

enormous  quantity,  in  an  acre  of  soil  6  inches  deep,  of  a  constitu- 
ent forming  the  smaller  proportions  of  the  whole  weight  of  an 
acre  of  soil  of  that  limited  depth.  It  shows  the  existence  of  a 
practically  unlimited  amount  of  the  most  important  mineral  con- 
stituents of  plants,  and  clearly  points  out  the  propriety  of  render- 
ing available  to  plants  the  natural  resources  of  the  soil  in  plant- 
food  ;  to  draw,  in  fact,  up  the  mineral  wealth  of  the  soil  by 
thoroughly  working  the  land,  and  not  leaving  it  unutilized  as  so 
much  dead  capital. 

••'  The  exact  determination  of  phosphoric  acid  in  a  soil,  it  may 
be  observed  in  passing,  is  attended  with  no  difficulty,  if  certain 
precautions,  which  it  is  feared  are  sometimes  neglected  by  chemists, 
be  taken.  I  will,  therefore,  give  a  brief  outline  of  the  plan — com- 
monly known  to  chemists  as  the  molybdic  acid  plan  of  determin- 
ing phosphoric  acid — which  yields  accurate  results. 

"  Not  less  than  lOO  grains,  or  better,  200  grains,  of  the  dried 
and  finely-powdered  soil  are  digested  for  an  hour,  or  thereabouts, 
with  3  or  4  ounces  of  moderately  strong  nitric  acid.  The  acid 
solution  is  then  passed  through  a  filter,  and  together  with  the  wash- 
ings from  the  insoluble  portion  of  the  soil  left  on  the  filter,  is 
evaporated  to  a  small  bulk  ;  thus  getting  rid  of  the  greater  part  of 
the  acid  employed  for  effecting  the  solution.  During  evaporation 
a  large  excess  of  molybdate  of  ammonia  is  added  to  the  solution, 
care  being  taken  to  keep  it  strongly  acid. 

"  If  there  be  much  phosphoric  acid  in  the  soil,  a  bright  yellow 
precipitate,  consisting  of  molybdic  and  phosphoric  acid,  makes  its 
appearance  at  once  ;  if  traces  only  be  present,  the  yellow  precipi- 
tate appears  only  on  the  concentration  of  the  liquid,  after  the 
great  excess  of  nitric  acid  has  been  been  expelled  by  evaporation. 
The  yellow  precipitate  containing  the  whole  of  the  phosphoric 
acid  present  in  the  soil,  molybdic  acid,  together  with  a  little  silica, 
and  frequently  some  oxide  of  iron,  is  thrown  on  a  filter  and  washed 
with  a  solution  of  molybdate  of  ammonia  rendered  strongly  acid 
by  nitric  acid,  until  a  drop  of  the  washings  passing  through  the  filter 
ceases  to  show  a  reaction  of  iron  with  yellow  prussiate  of  potash 
solution.  It  is  then  dissolved  on  the  filter  in  an  excess  of  ammo- 
nia, and  the  ammoniacal  liquid  precipitated  with  an  ammoniacal 
solution  of  sulphate  of  magnesia,  which  throws  down  the  phos- 
phoric acid  as  phosphate  of  magnesia  and  ammonia.  After  stand- 
ing at  rest  for  about  12  hours,  the  magnesia  precipitate  is  collected 
on  a  small  filter  and  washed  clean  with  strong  ammonia  water. 
Together  with  the  phosphoric  acid,  traces  of  silica,  and  generally 
also  traces  of  oxide  of  iron,  are  thrown  down  with  the  magnesia  pre- 


308  HANDY-BOOK     OF    HUSBANDRY. 

cipitate.  In  order  to  separate  these  impurities  the  precipitate  is  dis- 
sohed  in  a  few  drops  ot  hvdrochloric  acid,  and  the  acid  solution 
carefullv  evaporated  to  complete  dryness.  The  hard,  dried  resi- 
due is  again  made  acid  with  muriatic  acid,  a  little  water  is  then 
added,  and  the  liquid  passed  through  a  small  filter,  on  which  are 
left  insoluble  traces  of  the  silica  originally  thrown  down  with 
magnesia.  A  few  drops  of  citric  acid  having  been  added  to  the 
acid  solution,  with  a  view  of  keeping  any  traces  of  iron  in  solu- 
tion, strong  ammonia  is  finally  added,  which  throws  down  a 
second  time  phosphate  of  magnesia  and  ammonia,  now  free  from 
silica  and  oxide  of  iron.  The  precipitate  is  collected,  washed  with 
ammonia  water,  dried,  burned  in  a  platinum  crucible  or  capsule, 
weighed,  and  the  phosphoric  acid  calculated  from  the  weight  of  the 
tri-basic  phosphate  of  magnesia  left  on  burning. 

*■*■  Following  this  plan  and  the  precautions  here  indicated,  the 
smallest  amount  of  phosphoric  acid  in  a  soil  can  be  determined 
with  great  precision.  If  the  magnesia  precipitate  be  not  redis- 
solved  and  freed  from  silica,  as  pointed  out,  a  higher  percentage 
of  phosphoric  acid  necessarily  is  obtained  than  the  actual  quantity 
which  the  soil  contains. 

"  Ckver-rorjts. — The  roots  from  I  square  foot  of  soil  were 
cleaned  as  much  as  possible,  dried  completely  at  212°,  and  in  that 
state  weighed  240  grains.  An  acre  consequently  contained 
1,493^  lbs.  of  dried  clover-roots. 

The  clover-roots  contained  : — 

Dried  at  zii"  Fahr. 

♦Organic  matter ^''jl 

f  Mineral  matter  (ash) 1867 

1 00  00 

♦  Yielding  nitrogen '"^JS 

Equal  to  ammonia '"9*5 

t  Including  insoluble  silicious  matter  (.clay  and  sand) Il*67 

"  Accordingly,  the  clover-roots  in  an  acre  of  land  furnished  24^ 
lbs.  of  nitrogen.      We  have  thus  : — 

lbs.  of  Nitrogen. 

In  the  6  inches  of  surfece  soil SiSS" 

In  large  clover-roots -4l 

In  second  6  inches  of  soil '7875 

Total  amount  of  nitrogen  in  i  acre  of  soil  12  inches  deep.   5,1+9^ 

Equal  to  ammonia 6,j74i 


FORAGE    CROPS.  309 

or,  in  round  numbers,  2  tons  6  cwts.  of  nitrogen  per  acre, 
an  enormous  quantity,  which  must  have  a  powerful  influence  in 
encouraging  the  luxuriant  development  of  the  succeeding  wheat- 
crop,  although  only  a  traction  of  the  total  amount  of  nitrogen  in 
the  clover-remains  may  become  sufficiently  decomposed  in  time 
to  be  available  to  the  young  wheat-plants. 

"  Clover-soil  from  part  of  ii -acre  field  of  Burcott  Lodge  Farm^ 
Le'ighton-Buzzard^  once  mown  for  hay^  and  left  afterward  for 
seed. 

*'  Produce  i\  tons  of  clover-hay  and  3  cwts.  of  seed  per  acre. 

"  This  soil  was  obtained  within  a  distance  of  5  yards  from  the 
part  of  the  field  where  the  soil  was  dug  up  after  the  two  cuttings 
of  hay.  After  the  seed  there  was  some  difficulty  in  finding  a 
square  foot  containing  the  same  number  of  large  clover-roots  as 
that  on  the  part  of  the  field  twice  mown  ;  however,  at  last,  in  the 
beginning  of  November,  a  square  foot  containing  exactly  18  strong 
roots  was  found  and  dug  up  to  a  depth  of  18  inches.  The  soil 
dug  after  the  seed  was  much  drier  than  that  dug  after  the  two 
cuttings  of  hay  : — 

lbs. 

The  upper,  6  inches  deep,  i  foot  square,  weighed 56 

The  next,  "  "  "  58 

The  third,  "  "  "  60 

"  After  drying  by  exposure  to  hot  air,  the  three  layers  of  soil 
weighed  : — 

lbs. 

The  upper  6  inches  I  foot  square 49I 

The  next  "  "  50-^ 

The  third  "  "  5ii 

"Equal  portions  of  the  dried  soil  from  each  6-inch  section  were 
mixed  together  and  reduced  to  a  fine  powder.  An  average 
sample  thus  prepared,  on  analysis  was  found  to  have  the  following 
composition  : — 


310  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

Composition  of  Clover-soit  once  mown  for  hay\  and  afterward  left 

for  seed. 

Dried  at  ziz"  Fahr. 

(  Organic  matter 5-34 

^    I  Oxides  of  iron 607 

■5       Alumina 451 

j  Carbonate  of  lime 7-51 

Magnesia i  -27 

Potash 52 

Soda '16 

Chloride  of  sodium 03 

Phosphoric  acid -i 5 

Sulphuric  acid -19 

f  Insoluble  silicious  matter 73"84 

I  Consisting  of — Alumina 414 

.    I                               Lime  (in  a  state  of  silicate) 2'69 

__  u  -(                               Magnesia 68 

~  '''                                    Potash -24 

Soda     -21 

Silica 6588 


J=   o 


9959 


"  This  soil,  it  will  be  seen,  in  general  character  resembles  the 
preceding  sample  ;  it  contains  a  good  deal  of  potash  and  phos- 
phoric acid,  and  may  be  presumed  to  be  well  suited  to  the  growth 
of  clover.  It  contains  more  carbonate  of  lime,  and  is  somewhat 
lighter  than  the  sample  from  the  part  of  the  field  twice  mown  for 
hay,  and  may  be  termed  heavv  calcareous  clav. 

"An  acre  of  this  land,  i8  inches  deep,  weighed,  when  nearly 
dry  : — 

lbs. 

Surface  6  inches 2,407.900 

Next  "  2,444,200 

Third         "  2,480,500 

"  Or  in  round  numbers,  every  6  inches  of  soil  weighed  per  acre 
i\  millions  of  pounds,  which  agrees  tolerably  well  with  the  actual 
weight  per  acre  of  the  preceding  soil. 

"The  amount  of  phosphoric  acid  and  nitrogen  in  each  6-inch 
layer  was  determined  separately  as  before,  when  the  following 
results  were  obtained  : — 

1st  6  inches. 
Percentage  of  phosphoric  acid  ...    '159 

Nitrogen •189 

Equal  to  ammonia -229 


In  Dried  Soil, 

2d  6  inches. 

jd  6  inches 

•166 

•i6i       .. 

140 
•089 

•108 

FORAGE    CROPS.  311 

"  An  acre,  according  to  these  determinations,  contains  in  the 
three  separate  sections  : — 

1st  6  inches.        2d  6  inches.  jd  6  inches, 

lbs.  lbs.  lbs. 

Phosphoric  acid 3>97S      •  •  •  •     4^^5°     ■  ■  •  ■      2>5°° 

Nitrogen _ 4,715      3,550      2,225 

Equal  to  ammonia 5)7-5      ■  .  .  •      4,05°      ....      2,700 

*'  Here  again,  as  might  naturally  be  expected,  the  proportion 
of  nitrogen  is  largest  in  the  surface  where  all  the  decaying  leaves 
dropped  during  the  growth  of  the  clover  for  seed  are  found,  and 
wherein  root-hbers  are  more  abundant  than  in  the  lower  strata. 
The  first  6  inches  of  soil,  it  will  be  seen,  contained,  in  round  num- 
bers, 2j  tons  of  nitrogen  per  acre,  that  is,  considerably  more  than 
was  found  in  the  same  section  of  the  soil  where  the  clover  was 
mown  twice  for  hay  ;  showing  plainly  that  during  the  ripening  of 
the  clover-seed  the  surface  is  much  enriched  by  the  nitrogenous 
matter  in  the  dropping  leaves  of  the  clover-plant. 

"  Clover-roots. — The  roots  from  i  square  foot  of  this  soil, 
freed  as  much  as  possible  from  adhering  soil,  were  dried  at  212°, 
and  when  weighed  and  reduced  to  a  fine  powder,  gave,  on  analysis, 
the  following  results  : — 

*Organic  matter (>Vl(> 

•{■Mineral  matters 3  5'24 

loo-oo 

*  Containing  nitrogen  I'yoi 

Equal  to  ammonia z  066 

f  Including  clay  and  sand  (insoluble  silicious  matter) 26'04 

"A  square  foot  of  this  soil  produced  582  grains  of  dried  clover- 
roots,  consequently  an  acre  yielded  3,622  lbs.  of  roots,  or  more 
than  twice  the  weight  of  roots  obtained  from  the  soil  of  the  same 
field  where  the  clover  was  twice  mown  for  hay. 

"  In  round  numbers,  the  3,622  lbs.  of  clover-roots  from  the 
land  mown  once,  and  afterward  left  for  seed,  contained  51 J  lbs. 
of  nitrogen. 

"  The  roots  from  the  soil  after  clover-seed,  it  will  be  noticed, 
were  not  so  clean  as  the  preceding  sample,  nevertheless,  they 
yielded  more  nitrogen.  In  64*/6  of  organic  matter  we  have  here 
I "702  of  nitrogen,  whereas  in  the  case  of  the  roots  from  the 
part  of  the  field  where  the  clover  was  twice  mown  for  hay,  we 
have  8 1 '33  parts — that  is,  much  more  organic  matter,  and 
I  "635,  or   rather  less  of  nitrogen.      It   is  evident    therefore,  that 


312  HAN'DY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

the  organic  matter  in  the  soil  after  clover-seed  occurs  in  a  more 
advanced  stage  ot  decomposition  than  found  in  the  clover-roots 
from  the  part  of  the  field  twice  mown.  In  the  manure  in  which 
the  decav  of  such  and  similar  organic  remains  proceeds,  much  of 
the  non-nitrogenous  or  carbonaceous  matters,  of  which  these 
remains  chieflv,  though  not  entirelv,  consist,  is  transformed  into 
gaseous  carbonic  acid,  and  what  remains  behind  becomes  richer  in 
nitrogen  and  mineral  matters.  A  parallel  case,  showing  the  dissi- 
pation of  carbonaceous  matter,  and  the  increase  in  the  percentage 
of  nitro£Ten  and  mineral  matter  in  what  is  left  behind,  is  presented 
to  us  in  fresh  and  rotten  dung  ;  in  long  or  fresh  dung  the  per- 
centage of  organic  matter,  consisting  chiefly  of  very  imperfectly 
undecomposed  straw,  being  larger,  and  that  of  nitrogen  and 
mineral  matter  smaller,  than  in  well-rotted  dung. 

"  The  roots  from  the  field  after  clover-seed,  it  will  be  borne  in 
mind,  were  dug  up  m  November,  while  those  obtained  from  the 
land  twice  mown,  were  dug  up  in  September  -,  the  former,  there- 
fore, mav  be  expected  to  be  in  a  more  advanced  state  of  decay 
than  the  latter,  and  richer  in  nitrogen. 

"  In  an  acre  of  soil  after  clover-seed,  we  have — 

Ibi. 

Nitrogen  in  first  6  inches  of  soil. 4»7*5 

Nitrogen  in  roots 5'i 

Nitrogen  in  second  6  inches  of  soil 3>35° 

Total  amount  of  nitrogen  per  acre  in  12  inches 8,1  261 

Equal  to  ammonia 9-*^7 

or,  in  round  numbers,  3  tons  and  12^  cwts.  of  nitrogen  per  acre, 
equal  to  4  tons  8  cwts.  of  ammonia. 

"  This  is  a  verv  much  larger  amount  of  nitrogen  than  occurred 
in  the  other  soil,  and  shows  plainly  that  the  total  amount  of  nitro- 
gen accumulates,  especially  in  the  surface  soil,  when  clover  is 
'  grown  for  seeds  ;  thus  explaining  intelligibly,  as  it  appears  to  me, 
whv  wheat,  as  stated  by  manv  practical  men,  succeeds  better  on 
land  where  clover  is  grown  for  seed  than  where  it  is  mown  for 

hav. 

"  All  the  three  lavers  of  the  soil  after  clover-seed  are  richer  in 
nitrogen  than  the  same  sections  of  the  soil  where  the  clover  was 
twice"  mown,  as  will  be  seen  by  the  following  comparative  state- 
ment of  results  : — 


FORAGE    CROPS 


.313 


I. 

Clover-soil  twice  Mown. 

11. 

Clover-soil  once  Mown,  and  then 
left  tor  Seed. 

Upper     1     Second 
6  inches.      6  inches. 

Third 
6  inches. 

Upper 
6  inches. 

Next 
6  inches. 

Lowest 
6  inches. 

Percentage    of    nitrogen     in 

■I  68             "092 
•198               112 

•064 
•078 

■189 
■229 

•134 
•162 

•089 
•108 

Equal  to  ammonia 

"  This  difference  in  the  amount  of  accumulated  nitrogen  in 
clover-land  appears  still  more  strikingly  on  comparing  the  total 
amounts  of  nitrogen  per  acre  in  the  different  sections  of  the  two 
portions  of  the  i  i-acre  fields  : — 

Percentage  of  nitrogen  per  acre  : — 

1st  6  inches.  2d  6  inches.  }d  6  inches. 

lbs.  lbs.  lbs. 

*  I.     In  soil,  clover  twice  over  ..  .    3,350       ....       1,875        ••••       1)3^5 
I   II.   In    soil,    clover    once    mown 

and  seeded  afterward 4)7^5        ....       3»350       ....       2)^2,5 

Equal  to  ammonia  : — 

*  I.     Clover  twice  mown 4,050        2,275      1,600 

t  II.  Clover  seeded 5,725        4,05°      i,70O 

*  I.     Nitrogen     in   roots    of    clover 

twice  mown 24^ 

+  II.   Nitrogen  in  clover,  once  mown 

and  grown  for  seed  afterward.  51^ 

I.  Weiglit   of  dry  roots    per  acre 

from  Soil  1 1,493^ 

II.  Weight   of  dry  roots   per  acre 

from  Soil  II 3. 622 

*  Total    amount    of   nitrogen    in    i 

acre,  12  inches  deep,  of  Soil  I    5,249^ 
f  Total   amount    of   nitrogen    in     I 

acre,  12  inches  deep,  of  Soil  II   8,i26j- 

*  Equal  to  ammonia 6,374^ 

"i"  Equal  to  ammonia 9.S67 

Excess  of  nitrogen  in  an  acre  of 
soil,  12  inchesdeep,  calculated 
as  ammonia  in  part  of  held 
mown  once  and  then  seeded.    3,492^ 

"  It  will  be  seen  that  not  only  was  the  amount  of  large  clover 
roots  greater  in  the  part  where  clover  was  grown  for  seed,  but  that 


314  HANDV-liOOK    OF   HUSBANDRY. 

likewise  the  different  avers  of  soil  were  in  every  instance  richer  in 
nitrogen  after  clover-seed  than  after  clo\er  mown  twice  for  hav  ; 
or  as  it  may  be  expressed  :  In  i  lb.  of  ammonia  there  were 
3,492°  of  ammonia  in  the  land  where  clovcr-seed  was  grown  than 
where  other  clover  was  made  cntirclv  into  hav  ;  or  the  former 
part  of  the  same  field  produced  rather  more  than  half  the  total 
quantity  of  nitrogen  yielded  by  the  latter. 

*'  Reasons  arc  given  in  the  beginning  of  this  paper  which  it  is 
hoped  will  have  convinced  the  reader  that  the  fertility  of  land  is 
not  so  much  measured  by  the  amount  of  ash-constituents  of  plants 
which  it  contains,  as  by  the  amount  of  nitrogen  which,  together 
with  an  excess  of  such  ash-constituents,  it  contains  in  an  a\ailable 
form.  It  has  been  shown,  likewise,  that  the  removal  from  the 
soil  of  a  large  amount  of  mineral  matter  in  a  good  clover  crop,  in 
conformity  with  many  direct  field  experiments,  is  not  likelv,  in 
any  degree,  to  affect  the  wheat  crop,  and  that  the  \  ield  of  wheat 
on  soils  under  ordinarv  cultivation,  according  to  the  experience  of 
many  farmers,  and  the  direct  and  numerous  experiments  of 
Messrs.  Lawes  and  Gilbert,  rises  or  falls,  other  circumstances 
being  equal,  with  the  supplv  of  available  nitrogenous  food  which  is 
given  to  the  wheat.  This  being  the  case,  we  cannot  doubt  that 
the  benefits  arising  from  the  growth  of  clover  to  the  succeeding 
wheat  are  mainly  due  to  the  fact  that  an  immense  amount  of  nitro- 
genous food  accumulates  in  the  soil  during  the  growtli  of  clover. 

"  This  accumulation  of  nitrogenous  plant-food,  specially  useful 
to  cereal  crops,  is,  as  shown  in  the  preceding  experiments,  much 
greater  when  clover  is  grown  for  seed  than  when  it  is  made  into 
hay.  This  affords  an  intelligible  explanation  of  a  fact  long 
observed  by  good  practical  men,  although  denied  by  others  who 
decline  to  accept  their  experience  as  resting  on  trustworthy  evi- 
dence, because,  as  they  sav,  land  cannot  become  more  fertile  when 
a  crop  is  grown  upon  it  for  seed  which  is  carried  off,  than  when 
that  crop  is  cut  down  and  the  produce  consumed  on  the  land. 
The  chemical  points  brought  forward  in  the  course  of  this  inquiry 
show  plainly  that  mere  speculations  as  to  what  can  take  place  in  a 
soil  and  what  not,  do  not  much  advance  the  true  theory  of  certain 
agricultural  practices.  It  is  only  by  carefully  investigating  subjects 
like    the   one   under   consideration    that    positive   proofs   are  given 

I  showing   the   correctness  of  intelligent    observers    in    the   fields. 

1  Many  years  ago  I  made  a  great  many  experiments  relative  to  the 
chemistry  of  farm-yard  manure,  and  then  showed,  among  other 
particulars,  that  manure,  spread  at  once  on  the  land,  need  not  there 
and    then  be  plowed  in,  masmuch  as   neither  a  broiling  sun   nor  a 


FORAGE    CROPS.  315 

sweeping  and  drying  wind  will  cause  the  slightest  loss  of  ammonia, 
and  that,  therefore,  the  old-fashioned  farmer. who  carts  his  manure 
on  the  land  as  soon  as  he  can,  and  spreads  it  at  once,  but  who 
plows  it  in  at  his  convenience,  acts  in  perfect  accordance  with 
correct  chemical  principles  in\ol\ed  in  the  management  of  farm- 
yard manure.  On  the  present  occasion  mv  main  object  has  been 
to  show,  not  m.erely  by  reasoning  on  the  subject,  but  by  actual 
experiments,  that  the  larger  the  amounts  of  nitrogen,  potash,  soda, 
lime,  phosphoric  acid,  etc.,  which  are  removed  from  the  land  in  a 
clover  crop,  the  better  it  is,  nevertheless,  made  thereby  for  pro- 
ducing in  the  succeeding  year  an  abundant  crop  of  wheat,  other 
circumstances  being  favorable  to  its  growth. 

"  Indeed  no  kind  of  manure  can  be  compared,  in  point  of  effi- 
cacy for  wheat,  to  the  manuring  which  the  land  gets  in  a  really 
good  crop  of  clover.  The  farmer  who  wishes  to  derive  the  full 
benefit  from  his  clover-lav,  should  plow  it  up  for  wheat  as  soon 
as  possible  in  the  autumn,  and  leave  it  in  a  rough  state  as  long  as 
is  admissible,  in  order  that  the  air  may  find  free  access  into  the 
land,  and  the  organic  remains  left  in  so  much  abundance  in  a  good 
crop  of  clover  be  changed  into  plant-food  ;  more  especially,  in 
other  words,  in  order  that  the  crude  nitrogenous  organic  matter  in 
the  clover-roots  and  decaying  leaves  may  have  time  to  become 
transformed  into  ammoniacal  compounds,  and  these,  in  the  course 
of  time,  into  nitrates,  which  I  am  strongly  inclined  to  think  is  the 
form  in  which  nitrogen  is  assimilated,  par  excellence^  by  cereal 
crops,  and  in  which,  at  all  events,  it  is  more  efficacious  than 
in  any  other  state  of  combination  wherein  it  may  be  used  as  a 
fertilizer. 

"  When  the  clo\er-lay  is  plowed  up  early,  the  decay  of  the 
clover  is  sufficiently  ad\anced  by  the  time  the  young  wheat-plant 
stands  in  need  of  readily  a\ailable  nitrogenous  food,  and  this,  being 
uniformly  distributed  through  the  whole  of  the  culti\ated  soil,  is 
ready  to  benefit  every  sin2;le  plant.  This  equal  and  abundant  dis- 
tribution of  food,  peculiarly  valuable  to  cereals,  is  a  great  advan- 
tage, and  speaks  strongly  in  favor  of  clover  as  a  preparatory  crop 
for  wheat. 

"  Nitrate  of  soda,  an  excellent  spring  top-dressing  for  wheat  and 
cereals  in  general,  in  some  seasons  fails  to  produce  as  good  an 
effect  as  in  others.  In  \  ery  dry  springs  the  rain-f:ill  is  not  suffi- 
cient to  wash  it  properly  into  the  soil  and  to  distribute  it  equally, 
and  in  \  ery  wet  seasons  it  is  apt  to  be  washed  either  into  the  drains 
or  into  a  stratum  of  the  soil  not  accessible  to  the  roots  of  the  young 
wheat.      As,  therefore,  the  character  of  the   approaching  season 


316  UANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

cannot  usually  be  predicted,  the  application  of  nitrate  of  soda  to 
wheat  is  always  attended  with  more  or  less  uncertainty. 

*'  The  case  is  different  when  a  good  crop  of  clover-hay  has  been 
obtained  from  the  land  on  which  wheat  is  intended  to  be  grown 
afterward.  An  enormous  quantity  of  nitrogenous  organic  matter, 
as  we  have  seen,  is  left  in  the  land  after  the  removal  of  the  clover 
crop  ;  and  these  remains  gradually  decay  and  furnish  ammonia, 
which  at  first,  and  during  the  colder  months  of  tl.e  year,  is  retained 
by  the  well-known  absorbing  properties  which  all  good  wheat-soils 
possess.  In  spring,  when  warmer  weather  sets  in,  and  the  wheat 
begins  to  make  a  push,  these  ammonia  compounds  in  the  soil  are 
by  degrees  oxidized  into  nitrates  ;  and  as  this  change  into  food, 
peculiarly  favorable  to  young  cereal  plants,  proceeds  slowly  but 
steadily,  we  have  in  the  soil  itself,  after  clover,  a  source  from  which 
nitrates  are  continuously  produced  ;  so  that  it  docs  not  much  aftect 
the  final  yield  of  wheat,  whether  heavy  rains  remove  some  or  all 
of  the  nitrate  present  in  the  soil.  The  clover-remains  thus  afford 
a  more  continuous  source  from  which  nitrates  are  produced,  and 
greater  certainty  for  a  good  crop  of  wheat  than  when  recourse  is 
had  to  nitrogenous  top-dressings  in  the  spring. 

"  The  remarks  respecting  the  formation  of  nitrates  in  soils  upon 
which  clover  has  been  grown,  it  should  be  stated,  do  not  emanate 
from  mere  speculations,  but  are  based  on  actual  observations. 

"  I  have  not  only  been  able  to  show  the  existence  of  nitrates  in 
clover-soils,  but  ha\  e  made  a  number  of  actual  determinations  of 
the  amount  of  nitric  acid  in  different  layers  of  soils  on  which 
clover  had  been  grown  ;  but  as  this  paper  has  grown  already  to 
greater  dimensions  than  perhaps  desirable,  I  reserve  any  further 
remarks  on  the  important  subject  of  nitrification  in  soils  for  a 
future  communication. 

"  Summary. 

"  The  following  are  some  of  the  chief  points  of  interest  which 
I  have  endeavored  fully  to  develop  in  the  preceding  pages  : — 

"  I.  A  good  crop  of  clover  removes  from  the  sod  more  potash, 
phosphoric  acid,  lime,  and  other  mineral  matters,  which  enter  into 
the  composition  of  the  ashes  of  our  cultivated  crops,  than  any  other 
crop  usually  grown  in  this  country. 

"  2.  There  is  fully  three  times  as  much  nitrogen  in  a  crop  of 
clover  as  in  the  average  produce  of  the  grain  and  straw  of  wheat 
per  acre. 

"  3.   Notwithstanding  the  large  amount  of  nitrogenous  matter 


FORAGE    CROPS.  317 

and  of  ash-constltuents  of  plants  in  the  product  of  an  acre,  clover 
is  an  excellent  preparatory  crop  for  wheat. 

"  4.  During  the  growth  of  clover  a  large  amount  ot  nitrogenous 
matter  accumulates  in  the  soil. 

"  5,  This  accumulation,  which  is  greatest  in  the  surface-soil,  is 
due  to  decaying  leaves  dropped  during  the  growth  of  clover,  and 
to  an  abundance  of  roots,  containing,  when  dry,  from  I J  to  2  per 
cent,  of  nitrogen. 

"  6.  The  clover-roots  are  stronger  and  more  numerous,  and 
more  leaves  fall  on  the  ground  when  clover  is  grown  for  seed,  than 
when  it  is  mown  for  hay  ;  in  consequence,  more  nitrogen  is  left 
after  clover-seed  than  after  hav,  which  accounts  for  wheat  yield- 
ing a  better  crop  after  clover-seed  than  after  hay. 

"  7.  The  development  of  roots  being  checked  when  the  produce, 
in  a  green  conflition,  is  fed  off  bv  sheep,  in  all  probability  leaves 
still  less  nitrogenous  matter  in  the  soil  than  when  clover  is  allowed 
to  get  riper  and  is  mown  for  hay  ;  thus,  no  doubt,  accounting  for 
the  observation  made  by  practical  men  that,  notwithstanding  the 
return  of  the  produce  in  the  sheep-excrements,  wheat  is  generally 
stronger  and  yields  better,  after  clover  mown  for  hay,  than  when 
the  clover  is  fed  off  green  by  sheep. 

"  8.  The  nitrogenous  matters  in  the  clover-remains  on  their 
gradual  decay  are  finally  transformed  into  nitrates,  thus  affording  a 
continuous  source  of  food  on  which  cereal  crops  specially  delight 
to  grow. 

^'  9.  There  is  strong  presumptive  evidence  that  the  nitrogen 
which  exists  in  the  air  in  the  shape  of  ammonia  and  nitric  acid, 
and  descends  in  these  combinations  with  the  rain  which  falls  on 
the  ground,  satisfies,  under  ordinary  circumstances,  the  require- 
ments of  the  clover  crop.  This  crop  causes  a  large  accumulation 
of  nitrogenous  matters,  which  are  gradually  changed  in  the  soil 
into  nitrates.  The  atmosphere  thus  furnishes  nitrogenous  food  to 
the  succeeding  wheat  indirectly,  and,  so  to  say,  gratis. 

"  10.  Clover  not  only  provides  abundance  of  nitrogenous  food, 
but  delivers  this  food  in  a  readily  available  form  (as  nitrates)  more 
gradually  and  continuously,  and  consequently  with  more  certainty 
of  a  good  result,  than  such  food  can  be  applied  to  the  land  in  the 
shape  of  nitrogenous  spring  top-dressing. 

"  Laboratory,  1 1  Salisbury  Square, 

Fleet  Street,  E.  C,  July,  1868." 

In  addition  to  the  foregoing,  I  extract  the  following  from  a 
paper  written  by  the  Hon.  Geo.  Geddes  for  the  New  York  Tri~ 


;318  HANDY-BOOK     OF     HUSBANDRY. 

bune.    Mr.   Geddes  is  one  of   the  most   skillful  and  enlightened 
farmers  in  the  country.    He  savs  : — 

"  At  a  meeting  of  the  New  York  State  Agricultural  Society, 
*'  manv  years  ago,  I  was  awarded  the  Hrst  premium  for  the  best 
"  cultivated  farm  in  competition  that  year, — 1^45'  The  com- 
"mittee  that  made  the  award  said  that  I  did  not  use  enough 
"  manure.  My  four  hundred  to  fiye  hundred  loads  from  the 
^'  barns  and  stables  drawn  out  each  year,  and  my  fourteen  tons  of 
*'  gypsum,  and  all  the  ashes  made  on  the  premises,  they  said  was 
"too  little  for  the  farm.  A  discussion  followed  the  reading  of 
"  the  report,  and  I  tried  to  show  that  I  did  do  all  that  true 
"  economy  dictated  in  the  way  of  making  barn-yard  manure ; 
"that  gypsum  and  cloyer  furnished  the  means  of  increasing  fer- 
"  tility,  at  less  cost  than  drawing  leayes  from  th^  woods,  muck 
"from  the  swamps,  and  making  expensive  compost  heaps.  In 
"  the  years  that  followed,  my  friend,  the  author  of  this  last  edi- 
"  tion  of  the  book  I  have  been  noticing,  has  had  not  a  little  laugh 
"at  my  expense,  growing  out  of  my  views  on  the  manure  ques- 
"  tion.  In  several  of  the  meetings  for  discussion  of  our  State 
"  Agricultural  Society,  manure  has  been  the  subject  before  us, 
"  and  for  all  these  years,  I  have  insisted  that  a  farm  should, 
"unless  situated  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  some  village  or  city, 
"be  so  managed  that  its  fertility  should  constantly  increase,  with- 
"  out  going  off  of  it  for  manure,  with  the  exception  of  gypsum, 
"and  perhaps  salt.  In  my  report  'on  the  agriculture  and  indus- 
"  try  of  the  county  of  Onondaga,'  made  in  i860,  I  said  much  of 
"  the  use  of  red  clover  as  a  fertilizer,  and  doubtless  astonished 
"  many  of  my  readers  by  some  things  in  that  report.  In  turn  I 
"  was  not  a  little  astonished  at  some  of  the  comments  made  on 
"  my  statements.  A  very  eminent  writer  on  agricultural  matters, 
"  living  in  New  Hampshire,  said  over  his  own  name,  in  an  agri- 
"  cultural  paper,  that  he  had  never  before  heard  of  plowing  in  a 
"crop  of  clover  for  manure,  and  that  •where  he  lived  the  farmers 
"  preferred  to  make  hay,  rather  than  manure,  of  clover. 

"  In  Mr.  Allen's  reference  to  what  I  said  on  this  question,  he 
"  makes  me  say  that  the  farmers  in  this  vicinity  '  would  not  draw 
"  bain  manure  a  mile,  if  it  were  given  to  them.'  I  do  not  complain 
"of  this,  for  perhaps,  I  have  in  some  discussion  said  this  ;  but  I 
"was  speaking  of  barn  manure,  or  rather  j^yrrt' manure  as  it  is 
"  made  here,  where,  as  Mr.  Allen  says,  '  we  raise  wheat 
"  largely  as  well  as  other  cereals.'  In  doing  this,  we  raise  a  great 
"  deal    of  straw    and    corn-stalks.      The    straw    and    corn-stalks 


FORAGE    CROPS.  319 

'  are  fed  to  our  farm  stock  with  great  profusion.  After  every 
'  heavy  snow-storm  of  winter  our  barn-yards  are  covered  deeply 
'  with  straw  to  be  trodden  under  foot  by  the  cattle  ;  the  lead- 
'  ing  object  being  to  get  this  straw  wet  and  broken  up,  so  that  as 
'soon  as  the  frost  has  gone  out  in  the  spring,  the  whole  mass 
'  can  be  flung  into  piles  to  rot,  and  become  so  reduced  in  bulk 
'  that,  by  once  turning  a  part  of  it,  in  midsummer,  we  can  get 
'  it  into  shape  to  draw  on  our  wheat  lands,  or  pastures,  in  the 
'  fall.  Now,  what  is  this  barn-yard  manure,  as  it  is  left  wlien 
'the  cattle  are  turned  to  pasture  in  the  spring?  A  great  mass  of 
'  straw,  and  butts  of  corn-stalks,  having  a  very  small  per  cent,  of 
'  the  dung  of  the  cattle, — filling  the  yards  two  or  more  feet  deep, 
'  and  saturated  with  water.  What  sensible  farmer  would  go  one 
'mile  from  home  and  draw  this  stuff  to  his  farm,  pile  it,  cut  it 
'  down,  and  repile  it,  and  in  the  fall  find  it  reduced  perhaps  four- 
'  fifths  in  bulk,  and  then  again  load  it,  and  draw  it  on  his  fields,  to 
'  fill  them  with  the  seeds  of  foul  weeds,  when  fifteen  pounds  of 
'clover-seed,  that  would  cost  perhaps  two  dollars,  and  a  bushel 
'  of  gypsum,  would  manure  an  acre  of  land  far  better  than 
'would  fifty  loads  of  this  barn-yard  manure,  as  it  was  found  in 
'  the  spring  ? 

"  Where  cattle  are  stall-fed,  and  Q-iven  all  the  srain  thev  will 
'  eat,  and  in  cases  like  this,  the  whole  thing  is  changed.  Manure 
'  from  such  sources,  perhaps,  would  bear  even  here  transportation 
'  for  many  miles.  One  load  of  the  dung  of  high-fed  horses  would 
'  be  worth  many  loads  of  the  strawy  contents  of  a  wheat-grower's 
'barn-yard. 

"  But  a  few  words  in  regard  to  the  Ohio  farmer  that  our  author 
'  found  wasting  his  hog  manure,  by  allowing  it  to  run  into  a  con- 
'  venient  brook.  There  may  have  been,  and  probably  was,  much 
'  water  to  a  little  manure  in  this  case,  and  like  city  sewage,  the 
'  manure  might  after  all  have  been  so  diluted  as  to  have  been  worth 
'much  less  than  would  at  first  have  been  supposed.  At  any  rate, 
'  we  have  seen  all  through  this  country  the  streams  made  foul  and 
'  unhealthy  to  the  fish  in  them,  and  to  the  people  along  them, 
'  by  the  drainage  of  the  hog-pens  of  distilleries.  In  a  case  near 
'  me,  no  man  but  a  raiser  of  fruit-trees  could  be  found,  who 
'  was  willing  to  provide  water-tight  wagon  boxes  and  draw  on 
'  his  nursery  the  very  much  diluted  manure  of  a  large  establish- 
'  ment  of  this  kind,  and  within  a  few  days  I  have  seen  the  brook 
'that  runs  by  it  used  to  conduct  the  manure  to  Onondaga 
'  Lake. 

"  But  to  return   to  the  clover.      It  is  sometimes  said,  that  it  is 

21 


3J0  nANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

*■'■  a  great  waste  of  a  hay  crop,  and  a  great  loss  of  time,  to  manure 
•■'with  clover.      Let  us  examine  this  point  a  little. 

*■'•  A  farmer  has  a  fine  meadow,  consisting  of  the  clover  that 
"  has  grown  from  fifteen  pounds  of  seed — not  of  the  large  '  pea- 
*'vine'  kind,  but  of  the  smaller  variety  of  red  clover — and  from 
"  five  quarts  of  timothy  seed,  sown  on  each  acre,  which  has  been 
"treated  to  a  dressing  of  gypsum  (commonly,  but  very  improperly 
'*  called  plaster).  This  meadow  is  cut  for  hay,  as  soon  as  the 
**  clover  is  in  full  bloom.  A  crop  of  two  tons  to  the  acre,  of 
**■  this  best  of  hay ^  should  be  secured.  Another  dressing  of  gypsum 
"  is  then  sown,  and  unless  the  season  is  uncommonly  dry,  up 
''  starts  the  clover,  and  generally  by  the  first  day  of  October, 
*'  in  this  latitude,  there  will  be  a  crop  of  clover-seed  averaging 
*'  three  bushels  to  the  acre,  that  should  pay,  over  and  abo\  e 
**  all  expense  for  labor,  fifteen  dollars.  The  timothy  grass 
''will  in  this  second  crop  make  very  little  show,  and  if  the  clover- 
"  seed  is  cut,  as  it  should  be,  so  high  as  to  leave  a  Jarge  part  of 
"  the  stalks  on  the  ground,  there  will  be  enough  left  to  about  fill 
"the  furrow,  if  plowed  that  autumn.  The  next  year  a  crop  of 
"  barley  sown  on  the  inverted  sod,  should  give  the  highest  yield 
"for  that  grain.  One  plowing  turns  up  this  decayed  sod  and 
"clover,  and  a  crop  of  wheat  should  give  its  best  yield.  Clover 
"and  timothy  seed  sown  on  that  wheat,  enables  the  farmer  to 
"repeat  the  process. 

"  I  ha\  e  supposed  the  land  to  be  in  good  condition  to  begin 
"with,  and  many  years'  experience  justifies  me  in  saying  that 
"it  will  be  richer  after  these  crops — four  of  them,  in  three 
*' years — have  been  taken  off  than  it  was  before.  But  on  this 
"  point,  I  propose,  presently,  to  introduce  a  witness,  whose  testi- 
"  mony  will  have  more  weight  than  any  thing  I  can  say.  I  now 
"  ask  what  time  has  been  lost,  and  what  has  been  sacrificed  in  the 
"  way  of  a  hay  crop,  or  any  thing  else,  and  what  has  been  the  cost 
"of  filling  the  ground  with  clover-roots,  and  the  furrow  with 
"  clover-tops  ? 

"  But  perhaps  the  owner  of  the  land  desires  to  do  more  in  the 
"way  of  increasing  fertility  than  I  have  thus  far  supposed.  Let 
"  him  plow  under,  if  he  can  find  a  plow  that  will  do  it,  the 
*'  second  crop  of  clover,  and  not  cut  his  crop  of  seed.  The  crop 
*'  of  hay  will  pay  full  interest  on  the  land  for  one  year,  and  the 
"  barley  and  wheat  crops  will  do  the  same  in  their  seasons. 
"  What  grain-raiser  can  draw  from  his  own  barn-yard  so  much 
"  manure  as  this  clover  makes,  for  the  cost  of  the  clover  and 
"  timothy  seed,  and  of  the  gypsum,  and  the  sowing  ?      But  does 


i'ORAGE    CROPS.  321 

*'  the  clover  add  to  the  land  the  fertilizing  properties  desired  in 
"the  necessary  quantities  to  replace  all  that  is  taken  off  by  the 
"  crops  named,  and  leave  a  satisfactory  balance  in  bank  to  go  to 
"  new  account  ?  " 

:i;  ^  ;ic  ^  ^  5i<  ={= 

Here  follow  copious  extracts  from  Dr.  Voelcker's  paper,  quoted 
from  above. 

Mr.  Geddes  concludes  as  follows  : — 

*'  About  the  time  this  great  agricultural  chemist,  who  perhaps 
stands  at  the  head  of  his  profession,  was  deli\ering  the  lecture 
from  which  I  have  been  making  quotations,  before  the  Roval 
Agricultural  Society  of  England,  I  was  writing  articles  for  the 
readers  of  the  Tribune^  urging  the  use  of  cloverasamanure, —  using 
my  own  and  my  neighbors'  experience  from  which  to  draw  my  facts. 
I  am  not  a  little  pleased  at  finding  that  this  great  chemist  has  got 
out  of  his  laboratory  and  gone  into  the  field  for  his  facts,  and  then 
carried  his  facts,  so  obtained,  into  the  laboratory,  and  gi\'en  a 
scientific  explanation  of  them.  His  language  is  vastly  stronger 
than  any  I  have  ever  used  in  favor  of  clover  as  compared  with 
other  manures.  His  comparison  of  clover  with  Peruvian  guano 
goes  further  than  I  have  ever  gone,  even  in  the  heat  of  debate, 
in  an  agricultural  club  meeting. 

"  In  addition  to  the  advantages  growing  out  of  the  use  of  clover 
as  a  manure  that  have  been  stated  by  the  learned  professor,  I 
wish  to  call  attention  to  the  important  fact  that,  as  the  clover 
grows  evenly  all  over  the  ground,  it  will,  in  its  decomposition, 
reach  with  its  fertilizing  powers  every  square  inch  of  land.  No 
reasonable  expenditure  of  labor  will  so  break  up  and  distribute 
barn-yard  manure  that  every  part  of  the  surface  of  the  soil  will 
be  reached. 

"  All  grain-growers  that  have  extensively  used  clover  as  a 
fertilizer  have  thereby  enormously  increased  the  quantity  of 
barn-yard  manure  made  on  their  farms  ;  and  it  certainly  should  be 
comforting  to  that  class  of  men  who  still  believe  that  additional 
value  is  imparted  to  vegetable  matter  by  drawing  it  from  the 
field  to  the  barn,  and  passing  it  through  the  bodies  of  farm  stock, 
and  then  drawing  it  back  to  the  field,  to  learn  that  by  raising 
large  crops  of  clover,  and  turning  a  part  of  them  into  the  ground, 
it  will  certainly  follow  that  the  barn-yard  manure  will  be  greatly 
increased  in  quantity  by  the  increased  yields  of  straw  and  corn- 
stalks produced  by  the  clover. 

"  The  men  who  do   the  most  at  manuring  with  clover  by  no 


322  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"  means  underrate  the  value  of  other  manures,  but  they  do 
"  lall  into  the  custom  of  laying  out  the  least  possible  amount  of 
'■'■  labor  that  they  can  on  the  contents  of  their  barn-yards,  and  get 
"them  back  into  the  soil.  The  manure  cart  is  apt  to  be  emptied 
^' on  some  field  near  the  barn,  and  the  'back  end  of  the  back 
"  field,'  to  use  the  expression  of  one  of  my  volunteer  correspon- 
*'  dents,  never  is  visited  by  it. 

"  No  other  class  of  farmers  (I  do  not  mean  gardeners)  with 
"  whom  I  am  acquainted  manure  as  highly  as  the  men  who  make 
"the  freest  use  of  clover  the  leading  principle  of  their  farm  man- 
*'agement. 

"Fairmoun't,  N.  Y.  Oct.  23,  1869." 

While  on  this  subject  of  the  fertilizing  effect  of  clover,  I  desire 
to  record  my  belief,  that,  theoretically  considered,  clover  may 
become  a  means  for  the  more  complete  exhaustion  of  the  soil  in 
the  end.  Fertility  depends  for  one  of  its  chief  supports  upon 
mineral  matters,  of  which  even  the  best  soils  contain  compara- 
tively but  a  very  small  proportion.  These  are  absolutely  neces- 
sary to  the  growth  of  all  agricultural  plants. 

Clover  can  a-eate  none  of  them.  Its  only  ability  is  to  develop 
and  make  more  readily  available  that  which  tlie  soil  already  con- 
tains, and,  while  a  soil  which  has  been  so  completely  exhausted  to 
the  depth  of  its  shallow  plowing,  that  it  will  produce  neither 
wheat  nor  corn,  nor  grass,  may,  by  the  aid  of  clover,  have  so  much 
of  the  fertilizing  minerals  of  its  subsoil  brought  into  action  as 
to  become  more  fertile  than  before,  it  may,  by  persistent  plun- 
dering,— by  constantly  taking  off  and  bringing  nothing  back, — be 
made  so  poor,  (subsoil  and  all,)  that  not  even  clover  will  grow. 
In  this  condition  the  land  is  called  "clover  sick,"  and  to  restore 
it  from  this  impoverishment,  nothing  will  suffice  but  long-con- 
tinued exposure  to  the  atmosphere,  by  frequent  plowing,  or  the 
addition  of  enormous  quantities  of  manure.  Judiciously  man- 
aged, clover  culture  may  be  made  the  means  of  restoring  the 
most  exhausted  soils  to  more  than  their  virgin  fertilitv,  and  of 
keeping  their  productiveness  always  at  the  top  mark  -,  but  emploved 
without  judgment,  it  must  in  time  (perhaps  a  very  long  time) 
effect  an  absolute  impoverishment. 


FORAGE    CROPS. 


323 


It  seems  hardly  necessary,  in  a  book  of  directions  for  practical 
farmers,  to  tell  how  clover  is  grown  ;  but  as  the  crop  is  not  univer- 
sally grown,  the  information  may  be  of  value  to  some  of  my 
readers. 

Clover  is  never  (so  far  as  I  know)  grown  alone.  It  is  bene- 
fited during  its  earliest  growth  by  being  sheltered  from  the  sun  and 
wind,  and  it  takes  a  better  hold  of  the  ground  when  sown  with 
oats  or  barley,  or  other  spring  grain,  or  among  the  standing  plants 
of  wheat  or  rye.  The  seed  is  sown  broadcast  on  the  sui^face  as 
early  as  possible  in  the  spring,  (even  on  the  snow  in  March,)  or 
immediately  after  the  harrowing  in  of  spring  grain.  It  is  suffi- 
ciently covered  by  subsequent  rains.  Indeed,  it  seems  hardly  to 
require  covering  at  all,  and  it  takes  root  in  the  compact  soil  of  a 
wheat-field,  which  has  been  beaten  hard  by  the  rains  of  a  whole 
winter. 

After  the  grain  has  been  mowed,  the  clover  (with  a  moderate 
amount  of  rain)  grows  vigorously,  and  will,  on  rich  land,  attain  a 
height  of  a  foot  or  ijiore.  Under  such  circumstances,  it  should 
be  fed  down  sufficiently  to  allow  the  free  access  of  the  sun  and 
air  to  the  soil,  that  the  roots  may  become  well  established  and  the 
growth  stocky.  In  this  condition,  it  will  much  better  withstand 
the  vicissitudes  of  an  open  winter,  which  is  its  greatest  enemy. 

In  latitudes  where  the  snow  lies  on  the  ground  throughout'  the 
season,  there  is  no  trouble  from  winter-killing,  but  when  this  pro- 
tection is  not  to  be  depended  on,  it  is  well  to^  top-dress  the  plants 
with  sea-weed,  strawy  manure,  or  other  rubbish.  For  manure, 
clover  asks  little  else  than  ground  plaster,  or  gypsum,  and  of  this 
so  small  2  quantity  as  a  single  bushel  per  acre  will  suffice,  if  it  be 
sown  evenly  (on  the  plants  rather  than  on  the  ground)  when  the 
leaves  are  wet  with  dew  or  with  a  misty  rain. 

The  amount  of  seed  used  on  an  acre  is  from  one  peck  to  four 
pecks,  and  I  am  by  no  means  certain  that  the  larger  amount  is  not 
the  more  profitable,— costly  though  clover-seed  is. 

Under  the  "  soiling  "  system,  and  indeed  on  all  farms  where  the 
highest  cultivation  is  the  rule,  it  will  be  found  best  to  crop  the 
clover  but  a  single  year,  cutting  three  times  during   the  summer, 


324  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

except  so  much  as  it  may  be  desired  to  save  for  seed.  On  rich 
land,  such  as  is  adapted  for  soiling,  an  amount  of  clover  mav  be 
cut  which  would,  if  cured,  make  four  or  six  tons  of  hav,  and 
there  would  be  left  in  the  soil  a  mass  of  roots,  that,  with  liberal 
manuring,  would  be  an  excellent  preparation  for  corn,  or  any 
other  crop  desired. 

A  good  field  of  clover  is  one  of  the  very  earliest  ready  to  cut 
for  fodder,  and  after  the  third  clip  has  been  taken  off,  the  soil  will 
afford  a  capital  bite  for  young  stock  late  into  the  fall. 

tor  hav,  the  crop  should  be  allowed  to  stand  until  two-thirds 
of  the  plants  are  in  full  bloom,  and  after  cutting,  it  should  be  cured 
(in  the  cock)  with  the  least  possible  amount  of  rough  handling,  as 
the  leaves  will  be  dry  while  the  stems  are  yet  quite  green,  and 
will  be  likely  to  bs  broken  off  and  lost  if  much  handled. 

From  what  has  been  said,  it  will  be  seen  that  clover  is  to  be 
regarded  as  the  "sheet-anchor"  of  American  agriculture,  and 
especially  of  tho  system  of  soiling.  It  enriches  the  land,  and  nour- 
ishes the  herd  as  no  other  crop  can.  As  a  forage  crop  s'utiply^  it 
is  later  than  winter  rye,  and  less  productive  (probably  less  nutri- 
tious) than  Indian  corn  ;  but  its  value  as  a  fertilizer  so  far  compen- 
sates for  its  shortcomings  in  these  directions,  that  it  should 
always  play  an  important  part  in  all  cases  where  green  fodder  is 
used. 

As  a  hav  crop,  clover  is  excellent  for  cows,  but  less  valuable 
than  the  grasses  for  horses.  In  my  own  practice  I  shall  depend 
on  it  almost  exclusively  for  hay  for  my  dairy  cows. 

Oats  are  not  very  much  grown  as  a  green  forage  crop,  as  it 
is  generally  considered  more  profitable  to  ripen  the  grain  for  mar- 
ket -,  but  whenever  "  soiling  "  is  practiced, — and  soiling  is  the  only 
method  yet  devised  that  will,  in  the  future,  enable  New  England 
to  keep  dairy  animals  in  competition  with  the  richer  lands  at  the 
west, — oats  will  be  found  of  the  greatest  importance  as  filling 
the  gip  between  early  rye,  and  the  grasses  and  Indian  corn. 
When  grass  has  become  too  ripe  and  hard  for  the  best  use  of 
milking  animals,  the  oat-field  is  in  its  best  estate,  and  will  furnish 


FORAGE    CROPS.  325 

an  excellent  fodder,  which  is  greatly  relished  by  all  stock,  and 
which,  up  to  the  time  of  the  hardening  of  its  stem,  is  admirably 
su'.ted  to  the  production  of  milk. 

The  only  specific  directions  for  its  cultivation  are  to  put  the 
seed  into  the  ground  at  the  earliest  practicable  moment  in  the 
spring,  and  to  sow  thickly.  An  earlv  start  (on  land  that  is  not  too 
wet)  seems  to  be  even  more  important  than  richness  of  soil.  And 
(unlike  this  crop  when  grown  for  grain)  the  land  cannot  be  too  rich^ 
as  it  should  all  be  removed  before  it  is  sufficiently  matured  to 
lodge.  As  soon  as  the  crop  has  fairly  blossomed, — if  there  is  a 
bit  of  corn  or  clover  that  can  be  cut  for  the  stock, — the  oats 
should  all  come  down.  At  this  stage,  (as  is  the  case  with  all 
cereals,)  the  nutritive  constituents  of  the  plant  are  the  most  uni- 
formly distributed  throughout  all  parts  of  its  structure,  and  prob- 
ably it  contains  (straw  and  all)  very  nearly  all  that  it  will  at  any 
time  contain.  At  all  events,  any  slight  disadvantage  that  may 
result  from  cutting  the  crop  before  it  has  ceased  to  receive  nutri- 
ment from  its  roots,  will  be  more  than  compensated  for  by  the  fact 
that  even  the  butts  of  the  straw  will  be  sweet  and  nutritious,  and 
will  be  consumed  without  waste.  Cut  at  this  stage  of  growth,  and 
properly  cured,  oats  will  be  little,  if  any,  inferior  to  the  best  hay. 

A  good  growth  of  oats,  from  rich  and  well-cultivated  land,  will 
make  from  two  and  a  half  to  three  tons  of  hav,  equal  to  average 
meadow  hav.  It  is  easily  cured,  and  keeps  perfectly.  Therefore 
there  is  nothing  risked  in  sowing  much  more  than  will  probably 
be  needed  for  green  feeding.  It  7nay  be  very  convenient  to  have 
it,  so  as  to  a\oid  cutting  the  corn  too  early,  and  if  it  is  not 
needed  green,  it  is  worth  all  it  costs  as  hay. 

Rye  is  the  great  lengthener  of  the  seasons.  Sown  early  in 
September,  on  rich  land,  using  four  bushels  of  seed  to  the  acre, 
it  will  often  afford  a  good  bite  for  the  stock  well  into  the  winter, 
if  only  the  severe  frosts  hold  off,  and  in  the  spring,  almost  before 
the  snow  is  fairly  off  of  the  ground,  it  starts  its  vigorous  growth, 
and  may  be  cut  or  pastured  fully  two  weeks  before  the  first  grass 
is  ready. 


326         HANDY- BO  OK  OF  nUSBANDRY. 

To  get  the  best  results  for  earlv  soiling,  the  cutting  should 
not  be  too  early^  but  the  crop  is  not  injured  (only  delavedj  by 
cutting  or  feeding  off  as  often  as  is  desired  at  any  time  before 
the  "jointing"  takes  place,  as  a  new  and  vigorous  growth  will 
follow  every  cutting. 

I  am  credibly  informed  that  by  being  cut  often  enough,  rve  has 
been  kept  in  luxuriant  condition  for  five  years.  I  have  myself 
taken  two  heavy  cuttings  in  one  season,  and  had  a  crop  of  ripe 
grain  afterward. 

Rve  is  a  good  green  fodder  only  when  in  a  comparatively  green 
and  immature  condition.  If  left  until  it  blossoms,  the  lower  part 
of  the  straw,  although  it  may  still  be  green,  is  too  hard  to  be 
readily  eaten  bv  cattle. 

Still  more  than  oats  is  rye  a  safe  crop  to  plant  to  excess,  as 
when  grown  on  land  ht  forsoiing  uses,  its  production  of  straw  is 
very  large,  and  rye  straw,  thrashed  by  hand,  is  always  marketable 
at  a  very  high  price,  usually  much  higher  than  the  best  hay,  and 
the  grain  is  of  considerable  importance. 

\IiLLET,  the  remaining  forage  crop  of  our  list,  is  one  on  which  I 
do  not  feel  qualified  to  give  instruction,  having  never  succeeded 
in  producing  a  satisfactory  crop.  I  am  informed  by  those  who 
have  grown  it  regiilarlv,  that  it  is  a  valuable  adjunct  in  green 
soiling.  My  own  conviction  is  that  it  cannot  compete  with 
Indian  corn, — nor  can  any  thing  else, — and  that,  therefore,  as  it 
cannot  be  produced  any  earlier  than  this,  there  is  no  advantage  in 
growing  it. 

Allen  says:*  "  It  grows  to  the  height  of  two  and  a  half  to  four 
"  feet,  with  a  profusion  of  stalks  and  leaves  which  furnish  excel- 
"  lent  forage  for  cattle.  From  eighty  to  one  hundred  bushels  of 
"  seed  per  acre  have  been  raised,  and  with  straw  equivalent  to  one 
"and  a  half  to  two  tons  of  hay;  but  an  average  crop  nry  be 
"  estimated  at  about  one-third  this  quantity.  Owing  to  the  great 
"waste  during  the  ripening  of  the  seed,  from  the  shelling  of  the 

♦  New  American  Book  of  the  Farm.     Xew  Ycrk  :  Orange  Judd  &  Co. 


FORAGE    CROPS.  327 

"  eailiest  of  it  before  the  last  is  matured,  and  the  frequent  depre- 
"  dations  of  birds,  which  are  very  fond  of  it,  millet  is  more  profit- 
"  ably  cut  when  the  first  seeds  have  begun  to  ripen,  and  har\  ested 
"  for  fodder.  It  is  cured  like  hav,and  in  good  land  vields  from  two 
*' and  a  half  to  four  tons  per  acre.  All  cattle  relish  it,  and 
"experience  has  shown  it  to  be  fully  equal  to  good  hay. 

"  Millet  requires  a  dry,  rich,  and  well-pulverized  soil.  It  will 
"  grow  on  thin  soil,  but  best  repavs  on  the  most  fertile.  It  should 
"  be  sown  broadcast  or  in  drills  from  the  first  of  Alav  to  the  first 
*'  of  July.  If  for  hay  and  sown  broadcast,  forty  quarts  per  acre 
"  will  be  required  ;  if  sown  in  drills  for  the  grain,  eight  quarts  of 
"  seed  will  suffice.  It  will  ripen  in  sixty  to  seventy-five  days 
"  with  favorable  weather.  When  designed  for  fodder,  the  nearer 
*'  it  can  approach  to  ripening  without  waste  in  harvesting,  the 
**  more  valuable  will  be  the  crop." 

It  is  possible  that  Mr.  Allen  is  mistaken  in  this  latter  state- 
ment. It  seems  to  be  a  well-established  fact  that  all  plants  of 
this  character  are  in  their  best  condition  for  hay  at  about  the 
period  of  blossoming. 

Flint  says:*  "It  is  very  valuable  and  nutritious  for  milch  cows, 
*'  both  green  and  when  properly  cured.  The  curing  should  be  very 
"  much  like  clover,  care  being  taken  not  to  overdrv  it.  For  fodder, 
"either  green  or  cured,  it  is  cut  before  ripening.  In  this  state  all 
"  cattle  will  eat  it  as  readily  as  green  corn,  and  a  less  extent  will 
"  feed  them.  Alillet  is  worthy  of  a  widely-extended  cultivation, 
*'particularlv  on  dairv  farms." 

If  millet  has  any  marked  advantage  which  should  bring  it  into 
common  use,  it  lies  in  its  ability  to  withstand  drought, — whether 
from  the  thinness  of  the  soil  or  the  heat  of  the  sun. 

*  Milch  Cows  and  Dairy  Farming.      Boston:  Tilton  &  Co. 


CHAPTER    XIII. 

LIVE    STOCK. 

Live  stock  is  more  or  less  important  to  the  farmer,  according 
to  the  circumstances  under  which  his  business  is  carried  on.  In 
extensive  grain-growing  regions,  where  the  policy  is  simply  to  raise 
the  largest  possible  crops,  rather  bv  extent  of  culti\ation  than  by 
excessive  production  per  acre,  and  where  it  is  intended  either  to 
trust  to  luck  for  the  fertility  of  the  land  or  deliberatelv  to  exhaust 
and  abandon  it,  live  stock  forms  no  important  part  of  the  farm 
machinery,  it  being  necessary  only  to  keep  such  teams  as  are 
required  for  plowing,  cultivation,  and  harvesting. 

In  other  extensive  regions,  where  the  chief,  almost  the  entire, 
business  of  the  farmer  is  confined  to  the  grazing  of  large  flocks 
and  herds  on  natural  pastures,  he  cares  for  little  else  than  live 
stock  ;  but,  at  the  same  time,  his  animals  live  almost  in  a  state  of 
nature,  require  scarcely  any  attention  beyond  the  annual  branding 
and  the  annual  selection  of  droves  for  market,  and  he  needs  to 
know  almost  nothing  concerning  their  management  as  understood 
by  skillful  husbandmen. 

Live  stock  becomes  an  important  element  in  the  economy  of 
the  farm  only  wheji  our  object  is  to  raise  fine  animals,  to  raise 
beef  for  market,  or  wool,  or  dairy  products,  or  poultrv,  as  a  means' 
for  converting  the  production  of  the  land  into  a  marketable  form. 
And  in  these  cases  its  management  always  is,  or  always  should  be, 
attended  by  a  full  appreciation  of  the  value  of  manure. 

"  No  manure — no  grass, 
No  grass— no  cattle, 
No  cattle — no  manure." 


LIVE    STOCK.  329 

This  is  the  circle  within  which  the  reasoning  of  the  best  mod- 
ern agriculture  constantly  revolves.  We  may  make  our  chief 
business  the  growth  of  large  crops,  yet,  unless  we  are  surrounded 
by  some  peculiar  circumstances,  we  cannot  hope  to  continue  the 
profitable  growth  of  large  crops  without  the  aid  of  manure  result- 
ing from  the  feeding  of  animals.  We  may  make  it  our  chief 
object  to  raise  fine  beef  or  other  animal  products  for  sale,  and  we 
may  regard  every  thing  else  connected  with  the  farm  as  purely^ 
incidental  to  this  ; — yet  we  shall  soon  find  that  the  key  to  our 
success  lies  in  the  fertility  of  the  land,  increased  by  a  judicious  use 
of  the  manure  that  the  animals  make. 

It  is  impossible  in  any  mixed  husbandry,  or  in  what  may  more 
properly  be  called  general  husbandry,  to  disregard  for  a  moment 
the  relation  always  existing  between  the  three  cardinal  points  of 
crops,  cattle,  and  dung.  If  we  do  away  with  the  cattle  and  sell 
our  crops,  we  fall  short  of  dung,  and  must  buy  it  or  its  substitute 
in  the  market.  If  we  fall  short  of  food,  our  cattle  and  our 
manure-pits  both  suffer.  If  we  allow  our  manure  to  run  to  waste, 
or  use  it  with  bad  economy,  both  cattle  and  crops  must  suffer 
in  the  end.  Of  course  there  are  circumstances  in  which  spe- 
cial facilities  for  purchasing  manure,  extraordinarily  high  prices 
for  grain,  or  the  prevalence  of  diseases  which  make  it  unsafe  to 
keep  large  stocks  of  cattle,  compel  a  deviation  from  the  foregoing 
principle.  But,  as  a  principle,  it  is  a  fixed  one,  and  any  change 
from  its  requirements  should  be  adopted  only  with  due  considera- 
tion and  for  good  and  sufficient  reasons,  which,  being  generally 
of  a  local  character,  it  is  not  necessary  nor  desirable  to  discuss 
in  this  connection. 

To  return  to  the  illustration  with  which  this  work  commenced, 
— that  of  a  young  man  about  entering  upon  the  improvement  of  a 
farm, — we  find  that  one  of  the  questions  which  it  will  be  most 
important  for  him  to  decide  is,  that  of  the  extent  to  which  the 
raiding  of  live  stock  should  form  a  part  of  his  plan,  and  having 
decided  this,  to  fix  upon  the  direction  which  his  live  stock  efforts 
shall  take. 

The  following  fields  are   open  to  him  :  the  raising  of  horses, 


330  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

the  making  of  beef,  the  making  of  pork,  the  sale  of  milk,  the 
manufacture  of  butter  or  cheese,  the  growth  of  wool,  the  pro- 
duction of  poultry  and  eggs,  and  the  raising  of  thoroughbred 
animals  for  what  is  called  the  fancy  market. 

Ordinarily  he  will  find  it  best  to  select  as  his  main  object  such 
a  branch  of  industry  as  his  farm,  his  buildings,  and  his  market 
indicate  as  most  desirable  ;  but  to  couple  with  this  in  all  cases 
some  collateral  branch  of  stock-keeping,  so  that,  to  use  a  com- 
mon expression,  he  may  not  haye  his  eggs  all  in  one  basket  •,  and 
that  he  may  be  able  to  make  one  department  assist  somewhat  in 
the  deyelopment  of  the  adyantages  of  another.  For  example, 
in  the  manufacture  of  butter  or  cheese  there  should  be  at  least  a 
sufficient  herd  of  swine  to  consume  the  refuse  products  of  the 
dairy ; — and  in  the  case  of  all  animals  to  which  grain  is  fed,  it 
will  be  found  adyantageous  to  haye  at  least  enough  poultry  to  pick 
up  the  sweepings  of  the  stables  and  the  waste  of  the  thrashing- 
machine.  Again,  whateyer  his  business  may  be,  it  will  be  neces- 
sary for  him  to  keep  working-teams,  and  if  the  production  of  beef 
promises  to  be  profitable,  he  will  find  it  ad\antageous  to  keep 
several  yokes  of  oxen,  working  each  pair  only  sufficiently  to 
stimulate  their  appetites  and  keep  them  in  an  improving  condition; 
while,  if  he  prefers  to  use  horse-teams,  there  will  be  generally  a 
decided  advantage  in  having;  mares  from  which  one  or  two  colts 
each  year  may  be  expected. 

It  is,  of  course,  impossible  to  say,  that,  as  a  general  rule,  any 
branch  of  stock-raising  is  more  profitable  than  any  other  branch  ; 
and  it  is  probably  true  that  over  the  whole  country  there  is,  in 
ordinary  husbandry,  not  very  much  difi^erence  between  any  of  the 
leading  branches.  If  there  were  a  decided  advantage  in  favor  of 
any  one  kind  of  stock,  the  difficulty  would  soon  correct  itself  by 
reason  of  the  neglect  of  some  other  branch,  until  the  price  of  its 
products  brought  it  again  within  the  practicable  range  of  profit. 
All  that  it  is  proper  for  me  to  do,  therefore,  is  to  state  briefly  the 
advantages  of  the  different  kinds  of  stock,  and  some  of  the  rules 
which  should  govern  their  management. 


LIVE    STOCK.  331 

HORSES. 

According  to  the  census  of  i860,  there  were  6,249,174  horses 
in  the  United  States,  equal  in  value  to  at  least  one-fourth  of  the 
present  national  debt  ;  and,  in  addition  to  these,  there  were  prob- 
ably over  one  million  mules  (1,151,148  asses  and  mules).  Of 
course,  so  far  as  the  more  settled  parts  of  the  country  are  con- 
cerned, a  very  large  proportion  of  the  horses  are  in  use  upon 
farms ;  and  their  chief  value  to  most  farmers  consists  in  their 
ability  to  do  his  work.  At  the  same  time,  in  addition  to  this  and 
incidental  to  it,  the  very  large  demand  for  horses  for  work,  and 
for  pleasure-driving  in  cities  and  towns,  creates  such  a  market  for 
them,  among  those  who  are  not  engaged  in  their  production,  that 
the  sale  of  the  increase  of  farm  stock  is  a  great  source  of  agricultural 
profit ;  and  wherever  a  farmer  is  so  circumstanced  that  he  can 
raise  a  few  colts  without  inconvenience,  he  will  generally  find  it 
advisable  to  have  a  large  proportion  of  mares  among  his  working 
teams. 

The  breeding  of  horses  in  this  country  has  generally  been  car- 
ried on  in  a  most  careless  and  haphazard  way.  Any  broken- 
down,  spavined,  heavy  old  mare,  that  ought  to  be  knocked  on 
the  head, — that  certainly  would  not^  for  general  use,  be  worth 
keeping, — is  usually  considered  good  enough  to  get  colts  from. 
And  this  accounts  for  the  fact  that  all  persons  who  are  familiar 
with  the  horses  raised  in  this  country  consider  it  advantageous  to 
buy  rather  old  animals,  with  the  idea  that  if  they  have  passed  their 
seventh  or  eighth  year  without  developing  a  congenital  disease, 
they  may  be  depended  on  for  a  fair  amount  of  service  ; — and  the 
immense  number  of  five  and  six  year  old  horses  that  go  blind  or 
lame,  or  get  broken-winded,  is  a  very  severe  comment  on  the 
ordinarv  policy  of  farmers  in  raising  horses. 

The  rule  that  "  like  begets  like  "  holds  in  no  case  with  greater 
force  than  in  the  breeding  of  horses  ;  and  we  may,  with  the  same 
reason,  expect  healthy  children  from  scrofulous  and  consumptive 
parents,  as  sound  colts  from  unsound  mothers. 

There  are  many  imperfections,  to  which  horse-flesh  is  subject, 


332  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

that  do  not  interfere  with  the  production  of  sound  progeny  ;  as 
the  accidental  loss  of  an  eve,  for  instance,  which  is  a  blemish, 
but  which  is  not  real  unsoundness,  and  is  not  likely,  after  inflam- 
mation has  subsided  and  after  the  animal's  attention  has  ceased  to 
be  drawn  to  that  part,  to  produce  any  unsoundness  in  the  eyes 
of  the  colt.  And  the  same  is  true  of  several  kinds  of  lameness 
which  result  from  purely  accidental  causes,  from  bad  shoeing,  etc. 
In  no  case  would  it  be  prudent  to  breed  from  a  mare  while  she  is 
actuallv  suffering  from  the  effects  of  any  accident  or  ill-treatment  ; 
but  after  the  wound  has  healed  and  she  has  settled  down  to  the 
even  tenor  of  her  wav,  there  is  no  reason  whv  such  accidental 
imperfections  should  be  perpetuated.  As  a  general  rule,  it  may 
be  stated  that  the  mare  that  is  best  suited  to  the  farmer's  purposes 
as  a  team  animal,  is  precisely  the  one  from  which  he  may  most 
reasonably  expect  to  get  good  colts  ;  and  the  same  rule  that  should 
guide  him  in  the  purchase  of  a  mare  for  work  should  also  guide 
him  in  the  matter  of  breeding. 

In  Stonehenge's  "  Britibh  Rural  Sports,"  the  following  direc- 
tions are  given  concerning  the  choice  of  a  brood  mare,  the  por- 
tion which  relates  chiefly  to  the  breeding  of  race-horses  being 
excluded  from  the  quotation  : — 

'■*■  In  choosing  the  brood  mare,  four  things  must  be  considered  : 
"  first,  her  blood  ;  secondly,  her  frame  ;  thirdly,  her  state  of 
*'  health  ;  and  fourthly,  her  temper. 

******* 

"  In  frame,  the  mare  should  be  so  formed  as  to  be  capable  of 
"  carrying  and  well  nursing  her  offspring  -,  that  is,  she  should  be 
*'  what  is  called  '  roomy.'  There  is  a  formation  of  the  hips  which 
*'  is  particularly  unfit  for  breeding  purposes,  and  yet  which  is  some- 
"  times  carefully  selected,  because  it  is  considered  elegant ;  this  is 
"the  level  and  straight  hip,  in  which  the  tail  is  set  on  very  high, 
"  and  the  end  of  the  haunch-bone  is  nearly  on  a  level  with  the  pro- 
"  jection  of  the  hip-bone.  *  *  *  3^  examining  her  [a  well- 
"  formed  mare's]  pelvis,  it  will  be  seen  that  the  haunch-bone  forms 
"  a  considerable  angle  with  the  sacrum,  and  that,  as  a  consequence, 
"  there  is  plenty  of  room,  not  only  for  carrying  the  foal,  but   for 


LITE    STOCK.  333 

*' allowing  it  to  pass  into  the  world.  Both  of  these  points  are 
*' important,  the  former  e\idently  so,  and  the  latter  no  less  so  on 
"  consideration,  because  if  the  foal  is  injured  in  the  birth,  either  of 
"  necessity  or  from  ignorance  or  carelessness,  it  will  often  fail  to 
"recover  its  powers,  and  will  remain  permanently  injured.  The 
"pelvis,  then,  should  be  wide  and  deep,  that  is  to  say,  it  should  be 
"large  and  roomy  ;  and  there  should  also  be  a  little  more  than  the 
"  average  length  from  the  hip  to  the  shoulder,  so  as  to  give  plenty 
*'  of  bed  for  the  foal  ;  as  well  as  a  good  depth  of  back-ribs,  which 
*' are  necessary  in  order  to  support  this  increased  length.  *  * 
*'  Beyond  this  roomy  frame,  necessary  as  the  eggshell  of  the  foal, 
"  the  mare  only  requires  such  a  shape  .ind  make  as  are  well  adapted 
*'  for  the  particular  purpose  she  is  intended  for.  *  *  * 

*'In  health,  the  brood  mare  should  be  as  near  perfection  as  the 
"artificial  state  of  this  animal  will  allow  ;  at  all  events,  it  is  the 
*'  most  important  point  of  all,  and  in  every  case  the  mare  should 
"  be  very  carefully  examined,  with  a  view  to  discover  what  devia- 
"  tions  from  a  natural  state  have  been  entailed  upon  her  by  her  own 
"  labors,  and  what  she  has  inherited  from  her  ancestors.  Indepen- 
"  dently  of  the  consequences  of  accidents,  all  deviations  from  a 
*'  state  of  health  in  the  mare  may  be  considered  as  more  or  less 
"transmitted  to  her,  because,  in  a  thoroughly  sound  constitution, 
"  no  ordinary  treatment  such  as  training  consists  of  will  produce 
"  disease,  and  it  is  only  hereditary  predisposition  which,  under  this 
"  process,  entails  its  appearance.  Still  there  are  positive,  compara- 
"  tlve,  and  superlative  degrees  of  objectionable  diseases  incidental 
"  to  the  brood  mare,  which  should  be  accepted  or  refused  accord- 
"  ingly.  All  accidental  defects,  such  as  broken  knees,  dislocated 
*'  hips,  or  even  breaks  down,  may  be  passed  o\er  ;  the  latter,  how- 
*' ever,  only  when  the  stock  from  which  the  mare  is  descended  are 
"  famous  for  standing  their  work  without  this  frailty  of  sinew  and 
"  ligament.  Spavins,  ring-bones,  large  splints,  side-bones,  and,  in 
"  fact,  all  bony  enlargements,  are  constitutional  defects,  and  will 
"  be  almost  sure  to  be  perpetuated,  more  or  less,  according  to  the 
"  degree  in  which  thev  exist  in  the  particular  case.  Curby  hocks 
"  are  also  hereditary,  and  should  be  avoided  ;  though  many  a  one 


334  HANDY-BOOK    OF   HUSBANDRY. 

"  much  bent   at  the  junction  of  the  os  calcis  with  the  astragalus  is 
"not  at  all  liable  to  curbs.      It   is  the  defective   condition   of  the 
"  ligaments  there,  not  the  angular  junction,  which  leads  to  curbs  j 
"  and  the   breeder  should  carefully  investigate  the   individual   case 
*'  before  accepting  or  rejecting  a  mare  with  suspicious  hocks.      Bad 
"  feet,  whether  from  contraction  or  from  too  flat  and  thin  a  sole, 
"  should  also   be  avoided  ;   but    when  they    have    obviously  arisen 
"  from  bad  shoeing,  the  defect  may  be  passed  over.      Such  are  the 
"  chief  varieties  of  unsoundness  in   the  leg  which  require  circum- 
*■*■  spection  ;   the  good  points,  which,  on  the  other  hand,  are  to  be 
"  looked  for  are  those  considered  desirable  in  all   horses  that  are 
"  subjected  to  the  shocks  of  the   gallop.      *      *      *      *      Such  are 
*'  the  general  considerations  bearing  upon  soundness  of  limb.  That 
*'  of  the  wind  is  no  less  important.      Broken-winded  mares  seldom 
*' breed,  and  they  are  therefore  out  of  the  question,  if  for  no  other 
"  reason  •,  but  no  one  would   risk  the  recurrence  of  this  disease, 
''  even  if  he  could  get  such  a  mare  stinted.      Roaring   is   a   much 
*'  vexed  question,  which  is  by  no  means  theoreticallv  settled  among 
''  our  chief  veterinarv  authorities,  nor  practicallv  bv  our  breeders. 
"  Every  year,  however,  it  becomes  more   and   more  frequent    and 
"  important,  and  the  risk  of  reproduction  is  too  great  for  anv  person 
*'  willfully  to  run  by  breeding  from  a  roarer.      As  far  as  I  can  learn, 
*'  it  appears  to  be  much  more  hereditary  on  the  side  of  the  mare 
''than  on  that   of  the  horse  ;  and  not  even   the   oft'er  of  a  virago 
*■'•  should  tempt  me  to  use  her  as  a  brood  mare.     There  are  so  many 
*'  different  conditions  which  produce  what  is  called  roaring,  that  it 
*'  is  difficult  to  form  any  opinion  which  shall  apply  to  all  cases.      In 
''  some  instances,  where  it  has  arisen  from  neglected  strangles,  or 
**  from  a  simple  inflammation  of  the  larynx,  the  result  of  cold,  it  will 
*'  probably  never  reappear  ;  but  when  the  genuine  ideopathic  roaring 
"  has  made  its  appearance,  apparently  depending  upon  a  disease  of 
"  the  nerves   of  the   larynx,  it  is  ten  to  one   that  the  produce  will 
"  suffer   in   the   same  way.      Blindness,  again,  may  or  may  not  be 
"hereditary,  but  in  ail  cases  it  should  be  viewed  with  suspicion  as 
"great  as  that  due  to   roaring.      Simple   cataract   without   inflam- 
"  mation    undoubtedly  runs  in    families  ;    and    when  a  horse  or 


LIVE    STOCK.  335 

"  mare  has  both  eyes  suffering  from  this  disease,  without  any 
"other  derangement  of  the  eye,  I  should  eschew  them  care- 
"  fully.  When  blindness  is  the  result  of  violent  inflammation 
*'  brought  on  by  bad  management,  or  by  influenza,  or  any  other 
"similar  cause,  the  eye  itself  is  more  or  less  disorganized;  and 
"though  this  itself  is  objectionable,  as  showing  a  weakness  of  the 
"  organ,  it  is  not  so  bad  as  the  regular  cataract.  Such  are  the  chief 
"  absolute  defects,  or  deviations,  from  health  in  the  mare  ;  to  which 
"  may  be  added  a  general  delicacy  of  constitution,  which  can  only 
"  be  guessed  from  the  amount  of  flesh  which  she  carries  while  suck- 
"  ling  or  on  poor  '  keep,'  or  from  her  appearance  on  examination 
"  by  an  experienced  hand,  using  his  eyes  as  well.  The  firm,  full 
"  muscle,  the  bright  and  lively  eye,  the  healthy-looking  coat  at  all 
"  seasons,  rough  though  it  may  be  in  the  winter,  proclaim  the 
"hardiness  of  constitution  which  is  wanted,  but  which  often  coex- 
"  ists  with  infirm  legs  and  feet.  Indeed,  sometimes  the  very 
"best  topped  animals  have  the  worst  legs  and  feet,  chiefly  owing 
"  to  the  extra  weight  they  and  their  ancestors  also  have  had  to 
"  carry.  Crib-biting  is  sometimes  a  habit  acquired  from  idleness, 
"  as  also  is  wind-sucking  ;  but  if  not  caused  by  indigestion,  it  often 
*'  leads  to  it,  and  is'very  commonly  caught  by  the  offspring.  It  is 
"  true  that  it  may  be  prevented  by  a  strap  ;  but  it  is  not  a  desirable 
"accomplishment  in  the  mare,  though  of  less  importance  than 
"  those  to  which  I  have  already  alluded,  if  not  accompanied  by 
"  absolute  loss  of  health,  as  indicated  by  emaciation,  or  the  state  of 
"the  skin. 

"  Lastly,  the  temper  is  of  the  utmost  importance,  by  which 
"  must  be  understood  not  that  gentleness  at  grass  which  may  lead 
"the  breeder's  family  to  pet  the  mare,  but  such  a  temper  as  will 
"  serve  for  the  purposes  of  her  rider,  and  will  answer  to  the 
"  stimulus  of  the  voice,  whip,  or  spur.  A  craven  or  a  rogue  is 
"not  to  be  thought  of  as  the  '  mother  of  a  family  ;'  and  if  a  mare 
"belongs  to  a  breed  which  is  remarkable  for  refusing  to  answer 
"the  call  of  the  rider,  she  should  be  consigned  to  any  task  rather 
"than  the  stud- farm.  Neither  should  a  mare  be  used  for  this 
"  purpose  which  had  been  too  irritable  to  train,  unless  she  hap- 
22 


336  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBAXDRY. 

*'  pened  to  be  an  exceptional  case  ;  but  if  of  an  irritable  familv, 
**  she  would  be  worse  even  than  a  roarer,  or  a  blind  one.  These 
''are  defects  which  are  apparent  in  the  colt  or  fillv,  but  the 
"irritability  which  interferes  with  training  often  leads  to  the 
"expenditure  of  large  sums  on  the  faith  of  private  trials,  which 
"are  lost  from  the  failure  in  public,  owing  to  this  defect  of 
"  nervous  system." 

The  mare  described  in  the  foregoing  quotation  is  a  thorough- 
bred race-horse,  intended  only,  or  chieflv,  tor  fast  running  ;  but 
any  farmer  wlio  has'  an  eye  for  horse-flesh,  and  who  will  take  the 
pains  to  examine  the  form  and  constitution  of  the  best  mares 
working  in  his  neighbors'  teams,  will  find  that,  in  its  general  par- 
ticulars, it  applies  very  well  to  them.  Of  course,  it  is  not  to  be 
recommended  that  farmers,  who  intend  that  their  team  mares  shall 
be  used  for  breeding,  should  purchase  only  such  mares  as  come 
up  to  this  description  ;  but  merely  that  in  purchasing,  with  an  in- 
cidental view  to  breeding,  or,  indeed,  in  purchasing  for  work 
alone,  there  will  be  a  decided  advantage  in  following,  as  closelv 
as  circumstances  and  prices  will  allow,  the  standard  herein  laid 
down.  Very  careful  attention  in  breeding  should  also  be  paid 
to  the  different  forms  of  unsoundness  and  bad  conformation  de- 
scribed. 

It  being  assumed  that  the  mares  from  which  we  are  to  breed  are 
sound  and  of  good  temper  and  form, — or,  at  least,  that  thev  are 
not  decidedly  ill-formed,  and  that  they  have  no  hereditary  disease 
or  imperfection, — the  great  remaining  question  for  the  farmer 
relates  to  the  selection  of  a  stallion.  And  herein  I  am  decided- 
ly of  the  opinion  that  the  common  practice  of  our  agricultural 
neighborhoods  is  a  faulty  one.  Horse-breeding  has  so  long  been 
almost  a  science,  that  several  things  connected  with  it  have  been 
determined  with  a  good  deal  of  accuracy  ;  and  one  of  these  is,  that 
the  preponderance  of  "blood"*  should  be  on  the  side  of  the  sire. 

*  By  "blood"  is  meant  that  strain  which  has  descended  in  direct  line  from  the  ani- 
mals imported,  more  than  a  century  ago,  into  England,  from  Barbary,  Arabia,  and  Tur- 
key; and  which  has  there  been  developed,  through  a  long  course  of  training,  into  a  race 
of  greater  speed  and  endurance  than  even  the  Arabian  horse  himself  possesse 


LIVE    STOCK.  .337 

The  passion  for  raising  fast  trotters, — a  passion  which  has 
been  stimulated  by  very  high  prices,  and  which  is  hkely  to 
continue  and  to  increase, — has  led  to  a  quite  general  adoption 
of  the  practice  of  breeding  to  fast-trotting  stallions.  And  there 
is  no  doubt  that  this  practice  frequently  results  in  the  production 
of  fast  trotters  ;  often  enough,  perhaps,  to  make  it  a  tempt- 
ing lottery, — but  a  lottery  it  certainly  is,  for  while  the  few  fast 
trotters  produced  are  of  exceptional  value,  a  large  majority  of 
the  "  get  "  have  decided  defects,  which  reduce  them  below  the 
average  of  good  horses.  Even  in  raising  horses  for  the  trotting 
turf,  I  should  adhere  in  my  own  practice  yery  strictly  to  the  rule 
which  has  been  established  by  the  orio;in  of  the  trottlns-horse 
himself, — that  is,  to  get  the  largest  amount  of  blood  on  the  side  of 
the  sire. 

Almost  without  exception,  every  really  distinguished  trotting 
horse  in  the  country  traces  back,  largely  on  the  side  of  the  sire,  to 
the  thoroughbred  English  race-horse,  which  is  the  only  source  of 
what  is  now  known  among  Enijlish  and  American  breeders  as 
"  blood;"  and  while  the  high,  free  action  which  fast  trotting  re- 
quires has  been  introduced  very  considerably  through  cold-blooded 
mares,  and  occasionally  through  cold-blooded  horses,  it  is  only 
by  a  combination  of  this  action  with  the  best  qualities  of  "  blood" 
that  the  best  results  may  be  confidently  sought.  Therefore, 
the  opinion  is  a  very  well-established  one,  that,  in  all  systematic 
breeding,  whether  for  the  turf  or  for  any  other  purposes,  whatever 
the  mare  may  be,  the  sire  should  be  a  thoroughbred  horse  ;  and  in 
making  this  statement  I  by  no  means  confine  It  to  the  production 
of  horses  for  fast  work  or  for  pleasure-driving,  for  I  believe  that 
for  every  use,  except,  possibly,  the  slow  draft  of  very  heavy  loads 
or  city  trucks,  it  is  more  economical  for  the  teamster  and  for  the 
farmer  himself  to  have  a  large  admixture  of  thorough-blood  in 
the  stock. 

As  a  case  in  point,  I  would  state  that  I  recently  employed  a 
neighbor  to  do  some  plowing  for  me;  his  team,  consisted  of  a 
pair  of  oxen  and  a  horse  on  the  lead.  The  horse  was  of  only 
average  size,  but  I  observed  from  a  distance  that  there  was  a 


338  HANDY -BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

spring  and  an  agilitv  in  his  movements  that  are  uncommon  in  the 
region,  and  on  examination,  I  found  that  he  was  obviously  doing 
quite  one-half  of  the  work.  At  the  end  of  a  long  day  he  had  the 
same  vigor  and  acti\itv  with  which  he  commenced  in  the  morn- 
ing, and  there  was  an  intelligent,  quick  movement  of  the  ears, 
and  a  spring  in  his  step,  that  one  rarely  sees  in  a  farm-horse. 
On  inquiry,  I  found  that  he  was  twenty-eight  years  of  age,  had 
been  owned  by  the  same  man  and  employed  in  the  same  work 
twenty-four  years,  had  never  missed  a  day,  and  had  never  let  pass 
an  opportunity  to  do  as  much  work  as  lay  in  his  power.  He  was 
fat  and  sleek,  and  I  should  have  judged  him,  from  his  general  ap- 
pearjnce,  to  be  not  more  than  seven  or  eight  years  old.  It  turned 
out  that  he  was  the  progeny  of  a  common  farm  mare,  of  good  form, 
by  a  thorouo-hbred  race-horse,  that  had  been  brouirht  into  the 
country  for  a  single  season,  and  so  few  mares  were  sent  to  him, 
that  it  was  not  found  profitable  to  keep  him  here. 

On  the  Madison  Avenue  line  of  omnibuses  in  New  York  City, 
it  has  always  been  the  rule  to  buy  horses  with  the  largest  possible 
proportion  of  thorough-blood.  I  should  say  that,  at  the  time 
when  I  noticed  the  teams  of  this  line,  the  horses  of  the  whole 
stable  would  average  more  than  half-bred,  many  of  them  probably 
seven-eighths  ;  and  during  the  heavy  snows  of  winter,  this  line 
always  makes  better  time  than  any  other,  and  the  proportion  of 
loss  amono;  their  teams  is  much  less,  while  the  averajre  num- 
ber  of  years  of  service  of  each  horse  is  much  greater  than  on 
any  other  line  in  the  city,  the  others  paying  no  regard  to  blood, 
but  purchasing  any  animals  that  are  sound,  and,  apparently,  of 
strong  frame. 

Several  years  ago  I  rode  almost  daily — sometimes  from  fifty  to 
sixty  miles  in  a  day — a  thoroughbred  English  mare,  weighing  less 
than  eight  hundred  pounds,  and,  although  rather  a  heavy-weight 
myself,  I  have  never  found  another  horse,  even  of  much  greater 
size,  that  would  carry  me  so  far  in  a  day,  so  many  days  in  suc- 
cession, and  with  so  little  apparent  distress,  as  this   mare  would. 

In  the  army,  in  the  spring  and  summer  of  1864,  I  rode  a  horse 
captured   from  a  rebel  officer,  and   learned  that  he  was  probably 


LIVE    STOCK.  339 

thoroughbred,  and  that  he  had  been  used  for  racing.  He  was 
a  rather  leggv  animal,  very  tall,  but  as  thin  as  a  shingle,  and  by  no 
means  such  a  horse  as  most  farmers  would  have  selected  to  carry 
a  man  through  a  long  day's  ride.  Yet,  on  the  occasion  of  the 
battle  of  Tishamingo  Creek,  I  rode  him  from  four  o'clock  on 
Monday  morning  until  half-past  ten  on  Wednesday  morn- 
ing, and  during  the  whole  time,  was  certainly  not  more  than 
two  hours  out  of  the  saddle  ;  and  much  of  the  time  I  was  ridmg 
furiously,  and  necessarily  without  the  slightest  regard  to  what 
became  of  my  horse.  The  command  comprised  about  4,000 
cavalry,  and  I  am  satisfied,  from  an  examination  of  the  troops  as 
they  returned,  that  there  were  not  five  horses  in  the  whole  armv 
that  had  sufi^ered  so  little  from  their  work  as  mine  had.  He  had 
the  same  springy  gait,  as  he  came  neighing  into  his  stable,  that  he 
had  when  he  first  started  out  from  Monday's  camp. 

These  instances,  and  many  others  that  have  come  under  my 
own  observation,  fully  confirm  me  in  the  opinion  that  what  is 
lost  in  size  and  apparent  strength  is  more  than  made  up  by  the 
endurance  and  activity  which  have  given  rise  to  the  proverb — 
"blood  will  tell." 

In  his  directions  for  the  choice  of  a  stallion  for  breeding,  Frank 
Forrester  says  : — * 

"  Now,  as  to  what  constitutes  value  or  excellence  in  all  horses. 
"  It  is  indisputablv  quickness  of  working  ;  power  to  move  or  carry 
"weight,  and  ability  to  endure  for  a  length  of  time  ;  to  travel  for  a 
"  distance  with  the  least  decrease  of  pace  ;  to  come  again  to  work 
"  day  after  day,  week  after  week,  and  year  after  year,  with  undi- 
"  minished  vigor.  And  it  is  scarcely  needful  to  say,  that,  under  all 
"  ordinary  circumstances,  these  conditions  are  only  compatible  with 
"the  highest  form  and  highest  physical  health  of  the  animal. 
"  Malformation  must  necessarily  detract  from  speed  and  power  ; 
"  hereditary  disease  or  constitutional  derangement  must  necessarily 
"  detract  from  all  powers  whatsoever.  Under  usual  circumstances, 
"  it  would  hardly  be  necessarv  to  undertake  to  show  that  quickness 
"of  working,  or,  in  other  words,  speed,  is  necessary  to  a  high  de- 

*  Herbert's  Hints  to  Horsekeepers.     O.  Judd  &  Co.,  N.  Y. 


340  HANDY -BO  OK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

**gree  of  excellence  in  a  horse  of  any  stamp  or  style,  and  not  one 
"  iota  less  for  the  animal  which  draws  the  load,  or  breaks  the  glebe, 
*'  than  for  the  riding-horse  or  the  pleasure-traveler  beiore  light 
*'  vehicles.  But  it  has  of  late  become  the  fashion  with  some  parties 
*' to  undervalue  the  advantages  ot  speed,  and  to  deny  its  utility  for 
"  other  purposes  than  tor  those  ot  mere  amusement ;  and  as  a 
*' corollary  from  this  assumption,  to  disparage  the  effect  and  deny 
'*  the  advantage  of  blood,  by  which  is  meant  descent,  through  the 
"  American  or  English  race-horse,  from  the  Oriental  blood  of  the 
*'  desert,  whether  Arabian,  Barb,  Turk,  Persian,  or  Syrian,  or  a 
*■'■  combination  of  two  or  more,  or  all  of  the  five. 

"  The  horse  which  can  plow  an  acre  while  Another  is  plowing 
"  half  an  acre,  or  that  which  can  carry  a  load  of  passengers  ten  miles 
*'  while  another  is  going  five,  independent  of  all  considerations  of 
**  amusement,  taste,  or  what  is  generally  called  fancy,  is  absolutely 
*'  worth  twice  as  much  to  his  owner  as  the  other. 

*'  Now  the  question  for  the  breeder  is  simply  this  :  By  what 
*'  means  is  this  result  to  be  obtained  ?  The  reply  is,  by  getting  the 
"greatest  possible  amount  of  pure  blood  compatible  with  size, 
'*  weight,  and  power,  according  to  the  purpose  tor  which  he  intends 
*'  to  raise  stock,  into  the  animal  bred.  For  not  only  is  it  not  true 
*' that  speed  alone  is  the  only  good  thing  deri\able  from  blood,  but 
*'  something  very  nearly  the  reverse  is  true.  It  is  very  nearly  the 
'*  least  good  thing.  That  which  the  blood-horse  does  possess  is  a 
"  degree  of  strength  in  his  bones,  sinews,  and  frame  at  large,  utterly 
**  out  of  proportion  to  the  size  or  apparent  strength  of  that  frame. 
"  The  texture,  the  form,  and  the  symmetry  of  the  bones, — all,  in 
*'  the  same  bulk  and  volume, — possess  double,  or  nearer  fourfold, 
"  the  elements  of  resistance  and  endurance  in  the  blood-horse  that 
*'  they  do  in  the  cold-blooded  cart-horse.  The  difference  in  the 
*'  form  and  texture  of  the  sinews  and  muscles,  and  in  the  inferior 
*'  tendency  to  form  flabby,  useless  flesh,  is  still  more  in  favor  of  the 
"  blood-horse.  Beyond  this,  the  internal  anatomical  construction 
*'  of  his  respiratory  organs,  of  his  arterial  and  venous  system,  of  his 
*'  nervous  system, —  in  a  word,  of  his  constitution  generally, — is  cal- 
"  culated  to  give  him  what  he  possesses,  greater  vital  power,  greater 


LIVE    STOCK.  ;341 

''  recuperator)'  power,  greater  physical  power,  in  proportion  to  his 
"bulk  and  weight,  than  any  other  known  animal,  added  to  greater 
"  quickness  of  movement,  and  to  greater  courage,  greater  endurance 
"  of  labor,  hardship,  suffering, — in  a  word,  greater  (what  is  called 
^'  vulgarly)  game  or  pluck  than  will  be  found  in  any  other  of  the 
"  horse  family. 

"  But  it  is  not  to  be  said,  or  supposed,  that  all  blood-horses 
"will  give  these  qualities  in  an  equal  degree,  for  there  is  as  much 
"  or  more  choice  in  the  blood-horse  than  in  any  other  of  the  family. 
"  Since,  as  in  the  blood  of  the  thoroughbred  horse,  all  faults,  all 
"  vices,  all  diseases  are  directly  hereditary,  as  well  as  all  virtues,  all 
"  soundness,  all  good  qualities,  it  is  more  necessary  to  look,  in  the 
"  blood-horse,  to  his  antecedents,  his  history,  his  performances,  and, 
"  above  all,  to  his  shape,  temper,  soundness,  and  constitution,  than 
"it  is  in  any  other  of  the  horse  family. 

"  To  breed  from  a  small  horse  with  the  hope  of  getting  a  large 
"  colt ;  from  a  long-backed,  leggy  horse,  with  the  hope  of  getting  a 
*'  short,  compact,  powerful  one  ;  from  a  broken-winded,  or  blind, 
"  or  flat-footed,  or  spavined,  or  ring-boned,  or  navicular-joint-dis- 
*' eased  horse,  with  the  hope  of  getting  a  sound  one  ;  from  a  vicious 
*'  horse,  a  cowardly  horse, — what  is  technically  called  a  dunghill, — 
"  with  the  hope  of  getting  a  kind-tempered  and  brave  one  ;  all  or 
"  any  of  these  would  be  the  height  of  folly.  The  blood  sire  (and 
"  the  blood  should  always  be  on  the  sire's  side)  should  be,  for  the 
"  farmer-breeder's  purposes,  of  medium  height,  say  fifteen  and  a  half 
"hands  high,  short-backed,  well  ribbed  up, short  in  the  saddle-place, 
"  long  below.  He  should  have  high  withers,  broad  loins,  broad 
"  chest,  a  straight  rump, — the  converse  of  what  is  often  seen  in 
"  trotters^  and  known  as  the  goose  rump  ;  a  high  and  muscular,  but 
"  not  beefy  crest  ;  a  lean,  bony,  well-set-on  head  ;  a  clear,  bright, 
"  smallish,  well-placed  eye  ;  broad  nostrils  and  small  ears.  His 
"fore-legs  should  be  as  long  and  as  muscular  as  possible  above  the 
"  knee,  and  his  hind-legs  above  the  hock,  and  as  lean,  short,  and 
"  bony  as  possible  below  those  joints.  The  bones  cannot  by  any 
"  means  be  too  flat,  too  clear  of  excrescences,  or  too  large.  The 
"  sinews  should  be  clear,  straight,  firm,  and  hard  to  the  touch. 


342  HAXDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"  From  such  a  horse,  where  the  breeder  can  find  one,  and  from  a 
**  well-chosen  mare  (she  may  be  a  little  larger,  more  bony,  more 
*'  roomy,  and  in  every  way  coarser  than  the  horse,  to  the  ad\  anta^e 
"  of  the  stock),  sound,  healthy,  and  well-limbed,  he  may  be  certain, 
"accidents  and  contingencies  set  aside,  of  raising  an  animal  that 
"will  he  creditable  to  him  as  a  scientific  stock-breeder,  and  profit- 
*'able  to  him  in  a  pecuniary  sense. 

"The  great  point  then  to  be  aimed  at  is,  the  combining  in  the 
*'  same  animal  the  maximum  of  speed  compatible  with  sufficient  size, 
"  bone,  strength,  and  solid  power  to  carry  heavy  weights  or  draw 
*'  large  loads,  and  at  the  same  time  to  secure  the  stock  from  the 
*' probability,  if  not  certainty,  of  inheriting  structural  deformity  or 
"  constitutional  disease  from  either  of  the  parents.  The  first  point 
"is  only  to  be  attained,  first,  by  breeding  as  much  as  possible  to 
*' pure  blood  of  the  right  kind  ;  and,  second,  by  breeding  what  is 
"  technically  called  among  sportsmen  and  breeders,  «/),  not  doivti : 
"  that  is  to  say,  by  breeding  the  mare  to  a  male  of  superior  (not 
*'  inferior)  blood  to  herself, — except  where  it  is  desired  to  breed 
"  like  to  like,  as  Canadian  to  Canadian,  or  Norman  to  Norman, 
*'  for  the  purpose  of  perpetuating  a  pure  strain  of  any  particular 
*'  variety,  which  may  be  useful  for  the  production  of  brood 
"  mares." 

It  is  frequently  objected  by  farmers  that  they  cannot  afix)rd  to 
pay  forty  or  fifty  dollars  for  the  service  of  a  thoroughbred  stallion, 
when  they  can  get  that  of  a  good  common  horse  for  ten  or  fifteen. 
To  this  objection  the  only  proper  reply  is,  that  they  cannot  aft'ord 
to  take  the  service  of  the  common  horse  as  a  gift.  The  cost  of 
the  service  of  the  stallion  is  a  very  small  part  of  the  cost  of  raising 
a  horse.  The  care  and  attention  that  the  mare  should  receive 
during  pregnancy,  the  risks  of  foaling,  and  the  feed  of  the 
mother  and  colt  during  lactation,  as  well  as  the  growth  and  train- 
ing of  the  colt  for  four  or  five  years,  are  the  same  in  every  case  ; 
and  it  may  be  safely  assumed,  as  an  average  rule,  that  while  the 
thoroughbred  colt  may  cost  from  twentv-five  to  fifty  dollars  more 
than  the  common-bred  one,  the  vigor  of  his  constitution  during 
his  growth,  and  the  extra  value  of  his   appearance  and  his  ability 


LIVE    STOCK.  343 

to  perform  when  ready  for  market,  will  be  worth  from  one  to 
several  hundred  dollars  more.  It  it  will  pay  to  raise  horses  at  all, 
and  this  is  a  question  which  must  be  decided  by  each  man  for  him- 
self, it  will  certainly  pay,  in  every  case,  to  raise  the  best  horses 
that  it  is  possible  to  produce. 

If  blood-horses  were  only  valuable  for  pleasure-driving  and  for 
racing,  the  case  would  be  quite  different  ;  but  they  are  more  valu- 
able for  road-work,  for  farm-work,  for  horse-cars  and  omnibuses, 
and  for  all  of  the  uses  to  which  horses  are  ordinarily  put,  than 
are  any  others  ;  so  that  there  is  no  risk  in  making  the  experiment, 
while  there  is  always  a  chance  of  securing  an  animal  of  extraor- 
dinary value. 

The  mare  and  the  stallion  having  been  coupled,  the  work  of 
horse-raising  is  onlv  fairly  commenced.  The  success  with  which 
it  is  carried  on  will  depend  upon  the  skill  and  attention  with  which 
every  detail  is  attended  to,  from  this  time  until  the  weaning,  and, 
indeed,  until  the  training  of  the  colt  is  accomplished.  It  should 
be  remembered  that  the  mare  has  now,  not  only  to  make  up  the 
wastes  of  her  own  frame,  but  to  carry  on  the  growth  of  a  foetus, 
weighing  at  birth  probably  two  hundred  pounds  ;  and  she  should 
be  allowed  such  a  quantity  of  nutritious  food  as  will  secure  the 
best  development  of  the  foal,  and  as  shall  keep  her  in  the  best 
condition  for  delivery,  and  for  the  supply  of  milk  to  her  offspring. 
She  should  never  be  overworked,  and  she  should  never  be  allowed 
to  remain  entirely  idle  ;  for  exercise  and  good  grooming  are  as 
important  to  the  mother  as  they  are  to  the  colt  himself.  Dur- 
ing the  latter  months  of  pregnancy,  when  the  mare  may  be  too 
heavy  for  use  on  the  road,  she  should  be  allowed  a  free  range  in 
the  fields,  or  at  least  a  roomy  loose  box  in  which  she  may  take 
the  necessary  amount  of  exercise ;  and  she  should  never  be 
harassed   or   teazed,  or  in  any  way  annoyed. 

After  the  birth,  if  it  is  necessary  to  work  her,  as  it  generally 
is  on  farms,  the  foal  should  not  be  allowed  to  run  by  her  side, 
nor  to  draw  her  milk  while  she  is  overheated.  Nor  should 
she  be  so  excessively  worked  that  she  cannot  furnish  him  always, 
after  having  had  time  to   cool  off,  with  an   abundant   supply   of 


344  HANDY-BOOK    OF    EUSBAXDRT. 

healthy  milk.  It  is  not  usually  the  custom  among  farmers  to  feed 
grain  to  brceding-mares,  nor  to  young  colts ;  but  there  is  no 
period  in  the  lite  of  a  horse  when  a  little  grain  judiciouslv  cjivcn 
will  produce  so  good  an  effect  on  his  form,  his  spirit,  and  his 
constitution,  as  during  the  six  montlis  before  and  the  six  nii^nths 
after  his  foaling  ;  and,  very  early  during  his  colthood,  he  should  re- 
ceive, first  an  occasional  handful,  and  then  a  regular  daily  feeding 
of  the  best  oats. 

As  it  has  been  well-demonstrated,  in  the  care  of  all  live  stock, 
that  a  clean  and  open  condition  of  the  skin  is  conducive  to  health 
and  to  economical  feeding,  so  it  will  be  found  that  no  labor  on  the 
farm  is  more  profitably  expended  than  that  which  is  devoted  to  a 
a  daily  thorough  grooming  of  even  the  very  young  colt.  Both 
before  weaning,  and  after,  the  young  animal  should  be  treated  in 
such  a  manner  as  his  future  usefulness  and  his  future  need  for 
strength  make  necessary.  He  should  be  well  fed,  well  groomed, 
constantly  handled,  and  petted  and  talked  to,  and  should  have 
sufficient  exercise,  and,  during  the  first  five  years,  no  excessive 
work  ;  and  should  be,  even  in  his  infancy,  accustomed  to  harness 
and  wheels  and  saddles,  and  all  the  other  accompaniments  of  his 
future  service. 

By  following  these  rules  we  may  hope,  without  any  perceptible 
additional  expense,  to  raise  an  animal  that  will  be,  other  things 
being  equal,  many  times  more  valuable  than  the  poor,  half-starved, 
and  neglected  "  shag  "  that  farmers  generally  bring  to  market. 
Any  fair  horse  is  worth  one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  in  the  New 
York  market,  although  he  may  have  been  neglected  from  the  day 
of  his  conception  until  the  day  of  his  sale  to  the  drover,  but  very 
often  the  same  animal,  if  he  had  received  the  care  herein  recom- 
mended, would  have  been  eagerly  bought  for  from  five  hundred 
to  one  thousand  dollars  on  the  farm  •,  and  the  whole  extra  amount 
of  the  price  will  have  been  gained  by  the  inexpensive  means  of  a 
litt  e  extra  care,  and  by  the  proper  selection  rather  than  by  the 
incieased  quantity  or  value  of  the  food.  If,  in  addition  to  all  this 
caie  and  attention,  we  have  taken  pains  at  the  outset  to  put  the 
right  blood  into  the  brute's  veins,  we  may  feel  confident,  not  only 


LIVE    STOCK.  345 

that  he  will  be  purchased  at  a  high  price,  but  that  the  purchaser 
will  always  feel  satisfied  with  his  bargain. 

Much  has  been  said  and  written  in  this  country  about  the 
Percheron  horses,  and  surely  any  one  who  will  visit  the  animals 
imported  by  the  Massachusetts  Agricultural  Society,  and  now 
standing  at  Mr.  Motley's  farm  at  Jamaica  Plain,  will  realize  the 
fact  that  only  one-half  of  the  story  has  been  told.  They  are 
large,  magnificent  animals,  of  immense  weight  and  power,  and  yet- 
with  an  activity  that  it  is  surprising  to  see  in  such  a  mass  of  flesh. 
Of  course,  being  large,  they  are  large  feeders,  and  "  Orleans," 
who  weighs  fifteen  hundred  pounds,  would  undoubtedly  consume 
as  much  as  an  average  pair  of  farm-horses  ;  but,  on  the  other 
hand,  he  would  probably  draw  a  heavier  load  than  the  pair  would, 
and  would  draw  it  the  same  distance  in  less  time. 

It  is  supposed  that  these  horses  originated  in  a  cross  of  the- old 
horse  of  Normandy  with  the  blood  of  the  desert,  originally  intro- 
duced into  Spain  by  the  Moors,  and  in  the  conflicts  between  Spain 
and  France,  brought  into  connection  with  the  blood  of  Normandy. 
Certainly  these  horses,  in  their  heads  and  in  their  action,  show 
many  of  the  characteristics  of  the  Arabian  horse,  and  for  heavy  teams, 
especially  for  city  truck-work,  it  would  be  difficult  to  conceive  of 
better  animals.  Frank  Forrester  recommends,  and  the  recommen- 
dation seems  to  be  a  good  one,  that  mares  of  this  breed  be  crossed 
with  the  thoroughbred  English  race-horse  ; — certainly,  for  farm 
teams  or  for  carriage  use,  a  combination  of  the  size  and  lofty  action 
of  the  one,  with  the  quickness,  determination,  and  endurance  of  the 
other,  must  produce  the  most  satisfactory  results.  I  cannot  better 
conclude  these  remarks  on  horse-breeding  than  by  giving  Frank 
Forrester's  summary  : — 

"  First.  Size,  symmetry,  and  soundness  are  mostly  to  be 
"  regarded  in  the  mare  ; — blood  from  the  sire,  beauty  from  the  dam, 
"  is  the -golden  rule.  Second.  She  should  have  a  roomy  frame,  hips 
"somewhat  sloping,  a  little  more  than  the  average  length,  wide- 
"  chested,  deep  in  the  girth,  quarters  strong  and  well  let  down, 
"  hocks  wide  apart,  wide  and  deep  in  the  pelvis.  Third.  In  tem- 
"per  she  should   be  gentle,  courageous,  free  from  all  irritability 


SAG  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

*•*■  and  viciousness.  Fourth.  Previous  to  putting  her  to  the  horse, 
*'  she  should  be  brought  into  the  most  perfect  state  of  health,  not 
"  overfed,  or  loaded  with  fat,  or  in  a  pampered  state,  but  by  judi- 
*'  cious  exercise  and  an  abundance  of  nutritious  food  and  proper 
''grooming,  she  should  be  in  the  verv  best  condition.  Fifth. 
''During  gestation  she  should  have  generous  and  nourishing, 
"  but  not  heating  diet.  For  the  first  three  or  four  months  she 
"  may  be  worked  moderately,  and  even  to  within  a  few  weeks 
"  of  her  foaling  she  may  do  light  work  with  advantage  to  her 
"  system." 

The  treatment  of  farm  teams  is  a  matter  of  great  consequence  to 
the  farmer;  for  the  same  principle  which  requires. that  the  driver 
of  the  steam-engine  should  keep  every  part  of  his  machine  wtll 
oiled  and  in  good  adjustment,  and  that  he  should  keep  his  boiler 
well  supplied  with  fuel  and  with  w-ater,  should  actuate  the  farmer 
in  keeping  this  most  valuable  and  reallv  expensive  assistant  to  his 
labors  in  efficient  condition  by  careful  grooming,  judicious  feeding, 
and  attentive  oversight. 

Very  much  of  the  value  and  availability  of  the  horse  depends  on 
the  quality  and  quantity  of  his  food,  and  on  the  manner  in  which  it  is 
given  to  him.  Too  much  food  at  one  time,  too  little  at  another, 
food  of  improper  kinds  or  in  a  bad  state  of  preparation,  is  the 
foundation  of  one-half  the  ills  that  horse-flesh  is  heir  to.  There 
is  no  worse  economy  than  the  stinting  of  food,  or  the  administer- 
ing of  bad  food  because  it  is  cheap.  Also,  there  is  no  more 
wasteful  practice  than  the  giving  of  too  rich  and  expensive  food. 
Neither  is  there  any  greater  source  of  loss  in  connection  with  the 
keeping  of  farm-horses,  than  the  neglect  to  which  they  are  system- 
atically subjected.  The  horse,  even  in  the  rudest  state,  is  of  a 
somewhat  delicate  organization.  His  powers  are  very  (jreat, — 
greater  than  is  generally  supposed  ; — but  in  order  to  their  develop- 
ment and  to  their  long  endurance,  it  is  necessary  that  he  be  fed 
with  the  greatest  care  and  with  an  ever-watchful  judgment. 
Probably  the  capital  invested  in  farm-horses  in  the  United  States 
would  go  twice  as  far  ;  that  is,  the  animals  would  last  in  a  useful 


LIVE    STOCK.  347 

condition  twice  as  long,  if  they  were  thoroughly  well  fed  and 
cared  for. 

At  the  National  Horse  Show  at  Springfield,  several  years  ago, 
Mr.  Lewis  B.  Brown,  of  New  York,  exhibited  a  four-in-hand 
team,  which  trotted  around  the  course  in  about  three  minutes. 
The  united  ages  of  the  four  horses  amounted  to  more  than  one 
hundred  years,  and  e\'en  the  oldest  of  them  remained  useful  for  a 
long  time  after  that.  Indeed,  Mr.  Brown  told  me  that  he  did  not 
consider  it  of  much  importance  that  a  horse  should  be  less  than 
twenty  years  old.  Yet,  as  we  look  over  the  farms  of  even  our 
best  farming  districts,  how  few  useful  teams  do  we  find  that  are 
more  than  fourteen  or  fifteen  years  old.  Deducting  the  years  of 
their  cokhood,  v/e  see  that  the  period  of  their  possible  usefulness 
is  reduced  fully  one-half  by  careless  and  injudicious  treatment, 
and  especially  by  stingy  or  indiscreet  feeding.  To  go  over  the 
whole  range  of  directions  for  feeding,  from  the  time  when  the 
mare  is  first  got  Vv-ith  foal,  until  the  foal  is  worn  out  by  years  of 
service,  would  require  more  space  than  can  here  be  spared.  Con- 
cerning farm-horses,  the  following  directions  from  Herbert's 
''  Hints  "  will  be  found   useful  : — 

"  With  regard  to  mere  farm-horses,  it  is,  usually,  the  habit  to 
"  feed  them  entirely  on  hay,  or  cut  straw,  with  now  and  then  a 
"  mash,  giving  them  little  or  no  oats  or  corn.  It  is  certain,  how- 
"  ever,  that  this  is  a  mistake.  That  the  value  of  the  work  which 
"the  horse  can  do,  and  of  the  horse  himself,  arising  from  his  im- 
"  proved  condition  and  increased  endurance,  will  be  materially 
"  raised,  while  the  actual  cost  of  his  keep  will  not  be  very  materially 
*' increased  by  the  diminution  of  the  quantity  of  the  cheaper 
*'  and  less  nutritious  food  given  to  him,  and  the  addition  of  a 
"  smaller  or  larger  portion  of  the  more  nutritive  grain,  which  fur- 
"  nishes  stamina  and  strength  in  a  degree  greatly  in  excess  of  its 
"  own  increased  value,  may  be  assumed  as  facts. 

"  Slow-working  horses  do  not,  of  course,  require  so  much  nutri- 
"  ment  of  a  high  quality,  as  those  which  are  called  on  to  do  quick 
"  work,  and  perform  long  distances  ;  but,  as  a  rule,  all  animals 
"which  have  to  do  hard  work,  and  much  of  it,  must  necessarily 


'6i8 


11  A  X  D  Y  -  D  I )  O  K    O  F    II  U  ^  IJ  A  X  D  P.  Y . 


*'  be  so  kept  as  to  have  hard  flesh  ;  and   they  cannot  be  so   kept 
"  unless  they  are  ted  on   hard  grain." 

To  show  the  manner  in  which  horses  are  kept  bv  the  New 
York  omnibus  proprietors,  the  following  is  extracted  from  a  report 
offered  to  the  Farmers'  Club  of  the  American  Institute,  and  pub- 
lished in  the  transactions  of  the  Institute  for  1855  : — 


Stage  Like. 


Red  Bird  Stage  Line !  1 1 6 

Spring  Street  Stage  Line :I05 

Seventh   Avenu-  do I-27 

Sixth  Avenue.  (  Horses I117 

Railroad.        I  Mules iai  I 

New  York  Consolidated  Stage  Company '335 

Washington  Stables,  6  live.y  horses 1    .  . 


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"  It  is  the  object  of  the  stage  proprietors  to  get  all  the  work 
*'  out  of  their  teams  possible,  without  injury  to  the  animals. 
*'  Where  the  routes  are  shorter,  the  horses  consequently  make 
*' more  trips,  so  that  the  different  amounts  and  proportions  of 
*'  food  consumed  are  not  so  apparent  when  the  comparison  is 
'^  made  between  the  different  lines,  as  when  it  is  made  also  with  the 
*'  railroad  and  livcrv  horses.  The  stage-horses  consume  most, 
''and  the  liverv  horses   least.  , 

"  The  stage-horses  are  fed  on  cut  hav  and  corn-meal  wet,  and 
*'  mixed  in  the  proportion  of  about  one  pound  of  hav  to  two 
"pounds  of  meal,  a  ratio  adopted  rather  for  mechanical  than 
"  phvsiolo2;ical  reasons,  as  this  is  all  the  meal  that  can  be  made  to 
"adhere  to  the  hay.  The  animals  eat  this  mixture  from  a  deep 
*'  manger.      The  New  York  Consolidated  Stage  Company  use   a 


*  And  six  quarts  of  oats  at  noon. 


LITE    STOCK.  349 

"  very  small  quantity  of  salt.  They  think  it  causes  horses  to 
"iirinate  too  freely.  They  find  horses  do  not  eat  so  much  when 
"  worked  too  hard.  The  large  horses  eat  more  than  the  small 
"ones.  Prefer  a  horse  of  one  thousand  to  one  thousand  one  hun- 
"  dred  pounds  weight.  If  too  small,  they  get  poor,  and  cannot 
"  draw  a  stage  ;  if  too  large,  they  ruin  their  feet,  and  their  shoul- 
.^"ders  grow  stiff  and  shrink.  The  principal  objection  to  large 
"  horses,  is  not  so  much  the  increased  amount  of  food  required, 
"  as  the  fact  that  thev  are  soon  used  up  by  wear.  They  would  pre- 
"  fer  for  feed,  a  mixture  of  half  corn  and  half  oats,  if  it  were  not 
"  more  expensive.  Horses  do  not  keep  fat  so  well  on  oats  alone, 
*'  if  at  hard  labor,  as  on  corn-meal,  or  a  mixture  of  the  two. 

"  Straw  is  the  best  for  bedding.  If  salt  hay  is  used,  horses  eat 
"  it,  as  not  more  than  a  bag  of  two  hundred  pounds  of  salt  is  used 
"  in  three  months.  Glaubers-salt  is  allowed  occasionally  as  a  laxa- 
"tive  in  the  spring  of  the  year,  and  the  animals  eat  it  voraciously. 
"  If  corn  is  too  new,  it  is  mixed  with  an  equal  weight  of  rye-bran, 
"  which  prevents  scouring.  Jersey  yellow  corn  is  best,  and  horses 
"  like  it  best.  The  bay  is  all  cut,  mixed  with  meal,  and  fed  moist. 
"  No  difference  is  made  between  day  and  night  work.  The  travel 
"is  continuous,  except  in  warm  weather,  when  it  is  sometimes 
"  divided,  and  an  interval  of  rest  allowed.  In  cold  vveather  the 
"  horses  are  watered  four  times  a  day  in  the  stable,  and  not  at  all 
*'  on  the  road.  In  warm  weather,  four  times  a  day  in  the  stables, 
"and  are  allowed  a  sip  on  the  middle  of  the  route. 

"  The  amount  that  the  company  exact  from  each  horse  is  all  that 
"  he  can  do.  In  the  worst  of  traveling  they  fed  four  hundred  and 
"  fifty  bags  per  week  of  meal,  of  one  hundred  pounds  each.  They 
"  now  feed  four  hundred.  The  horses  are  not  allowed  to  drink 
"when  warm;  if  allowed  to  do  so,  it  founders  them.  In  warm 
"  weather  a  bed  of  sawdust  is  prepared  for  them  to  roll  in. 
"  Number  of  horses,  three  hundred  and  thirty-five.  Speed  varies, 
"  but  is  about  four  miles  an  hour.  Horses  eat  more  in  cold 
"  weather  than  in  warm,  but  the  difference  cannot  be  exactly 
"  determined." 

Proper  stabling  and  grooming  are  hardly  less  important  to  the 


350  HANDY-BOOK    OF    UU613ANDUT. 

economical  keeping  and  to  the  long-sustained  usefulness  of  the 
horse  than  proper  feeding.  The  horse  is  always  kept  in  a  more  gr 
less  artificial  condition.  His  food  is  generally  much  richer  than 
that  which  he  would  obtain  in  a  state  of  nature,  and  the  amount 
of  steady  exercise  which  is  required  of  him  is  very  much  greater. 
It  has  been  found  by  long  experience  that  his  artificial  condition 
requires  equally  artificial  treatment ;  but,  so  far  as  farm-horses  are 
concerned,  the  accompaniments  of  warm  clothing,  bandaging  the 
legs,  and  habitual  sweating,  may  be  dispensed  with.  The  regular, 
thorough,  daily  grooming,  howeyer,  and  such  housing  as  is  neces- 
sary to  preyent  undue  exposure  to  cold  or  to  drafts,  are  as  import- 
ant with  farm  teams  as  with  those  kept  for  fast  work.  The 
amount  of  food  consumed  will  be  less,  and  the  ability  to  perform 
work  will  be  greater,  if  the  animals  are  eyery  day  thoroughly  well 
curried  and  brushed.  The  horse's  legs  and  pasterns  in  particular, 
and  the  setting  on  of  the  mane,  should  be  efficiently  cleansed  and 
rubbed  ;  and  he  should  be  kept  in  all  respects  in  a  cleanly,  tidy, 
cheerful,  and  healthy  condition. 

Horses,  properly  kept  and  regularly  worked,  are  but  little  liable 
to  disease,  and  where  the  team  force  of  the  farm  is  neither  too 
small  nor  too  great,  their  work  is  performed  at  an  economical  rate; 
but  where  they  are  either  oyerworked  or  allowed  to  stand  long 
idle,  they  are  exceedingly  expensiye  and  hazardous  property. 
Properly  kept,  properly  managed,  and  properly  used,  horses  are, 
in  the  main,  much  cheaper  than  oxen,  because  they  perform  their 
work  with  so  much  greater  celerity  ;  but,  in  the  ramshackle  stable 
system  that  preyails  on  a  majority  of  farms,  oxen,  which  are  too 
slow  and  too  stupid  to  be  easily  abused,  and  which  will  keep  in 
condition  on  less  nutritious  food,  are  generally  most  esteemed. 
One  important  effect  of  their  selection,  howeyer,  in  place  of 
horses,  is  a  great  waste  of  the  labor  of  the  farm-hands.  The 
difference  between  plowing  an  acre  a  day  or  an  acre  and  a  half, 
between  traveling  ten  miles  or  fifteen  in  the  same  number  of 
hours,  is  one  of  those  differences  which  are  constantly  under- 
mining our  calculations  for  profit.  Good  and  profitable  farming 
necessarily  implies  brisk  and  actiye  work  on  the  part  of  every  man 


LIVE    STOCK.  351 

connected  with  it  ;  and  it  is  only  with  the  aid  of  two  horses,  kept 
in  the  best  condition,  performing  their  work  with  alacrity,  and 
stimulating  their  attendants  to  activity,  that  we  may  hope  to 
accomplish  the  best  results.  But  all  this  involves  much  more 
care  in  feeding  and  grooming  than  farmers  are  disposed  to  give  to 
their  teams.  If  I  were  writing  a  book  of  directions  for  hand-to- 
mouth  farmers,  I  should  advise  them  to  have  no  horses  upon  their 
farms,  but  to  poke  along  through  life  in  a  slow  and  slipshod  way, 
with  comfortable  and  lazy  cattle  and  comfortable  and  lazy  farm 
hands.  As,  however,  my  object  is  to  introduce  an  improvement 
in  every  branch  of  agriculture,  and  to  increase  the  activity  and 
economy  with  which  every  operation  is  performed,  I  do  not  hesi- 
tate to  recommend,  that,  for  all  regular  farm-work,  horses,  or,  still 
better,  large  mules,  be  employed.  For  the  extra  work  of  a  large 
farm,  especially  where  the  fattening  of  beef  cattle  is  one  of  the 
objects,  a  {ew  pairs  of  oxen,  to  be  worked  moderately  from  time 
to  time  will  be  found  economical.  Under  all  other  circumstances 
I  should  be  disposed  to  discard  them. 

NEAT    CATTLE. 

In  i860  there  were  in  the  United  States  23,419,378  neat  cat- 
tle,— old  and  young,  working  oxen,  and  milch  cows, — and  these 
were  all,  or  almost  all,  owned  by  farmers  and  graziers.  Their 
immense  number  indicates  the  magnitude  of  their  importance  to 
the  farmer  i  and,  indeed,  it  is  rare  to  find  any  farm,  large  or  small, 
upon  which  the  feeding  of  the  bovine  race  is  not  a  very  large 
element  of  the  business.  So  far  as  their  treatment  in  this  book 
is  concerned,  however,  it  has  been  thought  better  to  devote  to 
its  discussion  several  distinct  chapters,  namely,  "  Soiling  and  Pas- 
turing," "  The  Dairy,"  and  "  Winter  Management  and  Feed- 
ing."    We  will  pass,  therefore,  to  the  consideration  of 

SHEEP    AND    WOOL    GROWING. 

Sheep  husbandry  seems  to  be,  just  now,  under  a  cloud.      Prob- 
ably there   are   not  nearly  so  many  sheep  now  in  the  country  as 
there  were  ten  years  ago, 
23 


352  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

Common  mutton  is  and   has  been  for  some  time  very  low,  and 

the  low  price  to  which  wool  has  fallen,  owing  to  the  extra  pro- 
duction that  high  war  prices  induced,  has  made  the  prospect  very 
gloomy.  As  a  consequence,  hundreds  and  thousands  of  sheep 
have  been  slaughtered  for  their  pelts,  and  sheep-farmers  are,  in 
manv  parts  of  the  country,  turning  their  attention  to  other  branches 
of  industry. 

At  the  same  time,  the  markets  are  verv  poorlv  supplied  with 
good  mutton,  and  reallv  fine  carcasses  are  in  demand  at  paving  prices. 
Whether  wool-growing  will  become  profitable  is  largely  a  ques- 
tion of  tariff,  and  of  the  extension  of  woolen  manufacture,  and 
this  is  too  much  a  matter  of  speculation  for  a  sound  opinion  to  be 
given. 

All  that  it  is  safe  to  say  is,  that  well-fattened  mutton  of  the  larger 
breeds  is  sure  to  remain,  as  it  now  is,  sufficientlv  in  demand  at 
high  prices  to  leave  a  good  margin  of  profit  for  the  farmer  ; — as 
much,  probablv,  as  in  the  feeding  of  beef  cattle.  Earlv  lambs, 
also, — wherever  the  cost  of  transportation  to  the  larger  markets 
does  not  interfere, — mav  be  produced  at  a  good  profit,  under 
careful  management. 

There  is  no  branch  of  husbandrv  in  which  more  depends  on 
close  attention  to  details  than  in  the  raising  of  sheep,  and  no  one 
who  is  not  experienced  in  their  management  should  undertake  the 
business  without  first  making  a  special  study  of  the  subject,  which 
it  would  be  impossible  to  treat  fairlv  in  a  limited  space.  Any 
attempt  to  condense  the  necessarv  instructions,  so  as  to  bring 
them  within  the  limits  of  the  plan  of  this  work,  would  surely  be 
unsatisfactory.  The  reader  is  referred  to  Randall's  excellent 
treatise  on  Sheep  Husbandry. 

SWINE. 

Swine  hold  an  exceedingly  important  place  in  agriculture, — 
the  stock  of  swine  in  the  United   States  in  i860  havmg  numbered 

30'354,2i3- 

So  far  as  the  agriculture  of  the  more   improved    parts  of  the 

country  is  concerned,  swine  have  three  important   uses  :     First^ 


LITE    STOCK.  353 

the  consumption  of  grain,  roots,  etc.,  which  would  otherwise  be 
unsalable  at  remunerative  rates  ;  second^  the  consumption  of  refuse, 
which,  but  for  them,  would  be  wasted  -,  third^  the  production  and 
preparation  of  manure.  In  all  cases,  where  manure  is  used  at 
all,  the  last  of  these  is  one  of  the  most  important  of  their  advan- 
tages. In  those  almost  mythically  large  grain-fields  of  the  West, 
where  the  crop  is  said  to  be  harvested  mainlv  by  droves  of  cattle 
whose  gleaners  are  herds  of  swine,  it  is  not  to  be  expected, — 
perhaps  it  is  hardly  possible, — that  much  system  should  be  intro- 
duced. It  is  one  of  those  cases  where  unavoidable  waste  can  only 
be  mitigated,  and  where  the  amount  lost  is  considerablv  less  than 
would  be  the  cost  of  more  systematic  harvesting.  On  the  small 
farms  of  the  poorer  regions  of  New  England,  where  nearly  every 
crop  requires  its  yearly  application  of  manure,  the  ser\ices  of 
swine  become  important,  chiefly  in  the  manipulation  and  increase 
of  this  article.  In  the  wide  range  of  districts  lying  between  these 
two  extremes,  they  are  more  or  less  important  according  to  the  sys- 
tem of  cultivation  pursued.  The  extent  to  which  it  is  profitable 
to  feed  swine  solely  for  the  production  of  pork,  and  the  value  to 
be  attached  to  their  influence  on  the  dung-heap,  must  be  regulated 
according  to  the  circumstances  of  each  district,  and  almost  of 
each  farmer.  All  that  can  be  done  in  this  connection  is  to  state 
a  few  well-known  facts  concerning  their  care,  treatment,  and 
varieties. 

On  butter-farms,  where  there  is  a  large  quantity  of  skimmed 
milk  that  it  is  not  considered  worth  while  to  make  into  cheese, 
almost  the  only  means  for  disposing  of  this  valuable  material  is  to 
feed  it  to  swine.  And  it  should  be  the  care  of  the  farmer  to 
regulate  the  number  kept  as  closely  as  possible  by  the  quantity  of 
milk  that  can  be  supplied  to  them,  unless  his  circumstances  would 
justify  his  feeding  them  largely  with  grain,  or  purchased  food, 
which  is  not  always  the  case. 

Where  the  supply  of  skimmed  milk  is  depended  upon  as  the 
chief  food  of  these  animals,  it  will  be  better  to  keep  breeding 
sows,  coming  in  at  different  times,  so  that,  for  as  large  a  part  of 
the  year  as  possible,  there  may  be  young  pigs  to  be  fed,  as  these 


354  HANDY-BOOK     OF     HUSBANDRY. 

convert  the  milk  more  rapidly  into  flesh  than  do  older  animals. 
Gencrallv,  in  well-settled  neighborhoods,  and  in  the  vicinity  of 
towns,  the  price  paid  for  weaning-pigs  is  much  greater  in  propor- 
tion to  their  weight  than  that  paid  for  fat  hogs. 

If  it  is  considered  profitable,  owing  to  the  low  price  of  grain, 
or  the  probable  high  price  of  pork,  to  feed  grain,  it  will  be  found 
better  in  all  cases  to  steam  this,  or  otherwise  to  cook  it.  If  it  is 
previously  ground  the  profit  will  be  still  greater.  Especially 
if  it  is  not  to  be  steamed  or  cooked,  all  except  nubbins  and  waste 
grain  should  be  finely  ground,  and  soaked  in  water  before  feeding. 
The  question  of  steaming,  which  is  a  very  important  one,  is  dis- 
cussed at  length  under  its  proper  head.  It  may  be  stated,  in 
general  terms,  that  there  will  be  an  economy  of  fully  one-third  of 
the  food,  if  it  is  properly  cooked  before  being  given  to  the  animals. 
If  there  are  no  facilities  for  cooking  or  steaming,  it  will  be  a  good 
plan  to  mix  the  meal  with  hot  water,  and  to  leave  it  a  few  hours 
in  a  covered  barrel,  or  other  closed  vessel,  before  feeding  it. 

POULTRY. 

There  is  a  good  deal  more  to  be  said  about  poultry,  which  it 
would  be  of  advantage  for  every  farmer  to  hear,  than  I  can 
properly  take  room  for  in  this  connection.  Ideas  as  to  the  best 
manner  of  keeping  poultry  vary  so  much  that  it  is  only  on  a  care- 
ful consideration  of  the  farmer's  local  circumstances  that  it  will  be 
safe  to  make  a  decision  as  to  the  kinds  to  be  raised,  the  size  of 
the  flocks,  and  the  manner  in  which  they  are  to  be  kept.  It  has 
lono^  been  believed,  and  perhaps  it  is  true,  that  it  is  impossible  to 
keep  a  thousand  hens  with  the  same  proportional  profit  that  one 
may  obtain  from  a  flock  of  a  dozen  or  twenty.  But  there  is  a 
large  class  of  poultry-fanciers  who  discard  this  idea,  and  think 
that  if  the  same  amount  of  freedom  were  given  to  the  larger  flock, 
the  degree  of  profit  would  be  the  same.  This  is,  to  a  certain  ex- 
tent, demonstrated  by  the  experience  of  Mr.  Warren  Leland,  of 
the  Metropolitan  Hotel  in  New  York,  who,  at  his  farm  near  Rye, 
on  the  New  York  and  New  Haven  Railroad,  keeps  several  thou- 


LIVE    STOCK.  355 

sand  fowls  and  large  flocks  of  ducks  and  turkeys  with  very  great 
success.  His  profits,  and  the  quite  uniform  results  of  several 
years,  indicate  that  with  his  circumstances  one  may  raise  an 
almost  unlimited  amount  of  poultry.  But  many  farmers  would 
find  it  inconvenient  to  carry  on  the  business  on  Mr.  Leland's 
svstem.  He  gives  to  it  a  large  area  of  woodland  and  meadow, 
with  various  exposure,  and  a  good  stream  of  running  water,  and 
exercises  but  little  restraint  over  his  birds.  They  go  where  and 
when  they  please,  roost  in  trees  or  in  a  warm  stone  houseas 
they  please,  and  hatch  their  broods  in  prepared  boxes  or  in 
natural  nooks  as  they  please.  His  proportional  loss  is  very 
small  ;  the  number  of  eggs  he  obtains  is  probably  pretty  nearly  as 
laro-e  in  degree  as  it  would  be  with  a  small  flock,  and  his  success 
with  early  and  late  chickens  is  enough  to  satisfy  any  breeder. 
Of  course,  even  in  this  very  natural  system,  the  fowls  are  by  no 
means  left  in  an  unguided  state  of  nature  ;  for  a  skillful  person  de- 
votes his  whole  time  to  their  feeding  and  supervision,  and  to  great 
care  with  reference  to  sitting  hens.  The  feeding  is  liberal  but 
not  wasteful,  and  the  poultry-raising  is  an  important  branch  of 
the  business  of  the  farm  rather  than  a  mere  incident. 

Many  years  ago,  in  Western  New  York,  an  aged  couple  sup- 
ported themselves  by  the  production  of  eggs  on  a'  place  of  about 
four  acres.  They  kept  a  thousand  laying  hens  and  no  cocks. 
The  whole  place  was  surrounded  by  a  high  fence,  and  was 
divided  into  two  plots,  the  fowls  being  kept  in  one  of  the  plots  of 
two  acres  during  the  whole  of  one  season,  while  corn  was  being 
raised  on  the  other  ;  and  the  land  was  kept  for  several  years  in 
this  uniform  rotation  of  poultry  and  Indian  corn.  The  eggs  were 
sold  by  contract  throughout  the  season  for  eleven  cents  a  dozen, 
and  the  annual  income  varied  but  little  from  a  thousand  dollars. 
In  the  autumn  the  fowls  were  slaughtered  and  sent  to  market, 
and  a  fresh  lot  of  early  pullets  was  bought  early  in  the  next  sea- 
son. This  man  believed,  on  comparing  the  production  of  corn 
on  his  own  land  with  that  of  the  neighborhood,  that  the  manure 
of  the  poultry  increased  the  crop  to  such  an  extent  that  the  extra 
product  was  sufficient  for  the  entire  season's  feeding.      Probably 


3o6  HAXDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

this  is  the  rose-colored  side  of  the  story,  and  there  may  have  been 
drawbacks  with  which  I  am  not  acquainted,  but  my  information 
as  above  given  was  received  from  a  perfectly  reliable  source. 

In  a  little  book  recently  published,*  a  very  elaborate  descrip- 
tion is  given  of  a  system  which  is  now  being  adopted  in  England 
for  raising  poultry,  mainly  under  glass  and  in  large  establish- 
ments, and  on  thoroughly  well-organized  business  principles. 
The  detail  is  curious,  and  it  will  be  agreeable  to  know  that  the 
results  are  satisfactory  ;  but  it  is  yet  too  uncertain  to  be  adopted 
here  except  as  an  experiment.  In  Mr.  Flint's  preface,  however, 
there  is  given  a  plan  for  keeping  poultry  in  confinement,  which 
will  probably  answer  very  well,  and  which  is  at  least  worthy  of 
careful  trial  with  some  of  the  large  Asiatic  breeds  which  are  less 
inclined  to  roam,  and  need,  probably,  less  active  exercise  than 
our  old-fashioned  fowls. 

"  Build  coops,"  says  Mr.  Flint,  "  of  lath  or  thin  boards,  about 
'  ten  feet  long,  four  feet  wide,  and  two  feet  high, — four  feet  in 
'  length  at  one  end  to  be  a  tight  house,  or  coop  of  boards,  with 
'  floor  and  feeding  conveniences,  water,  etc., — the  latticed  portion 
'  to  be  bottomless.  Arrange  handles  at  each  end,  so  that  two  men 
'  could  lift  and  move  the  whole  ;  set  these  coops  upon  grass  ground, 
'and  move  them  their  length  or  width  daily,  thus  affording  a  fresh 
'grass  run.  Twelve  chickens  should  do  well  in  each.  As  soon 
'as  they  can  be  distinguished,  separate  the  cocks  from  the  pullets, 
'  and  wf'y^r  allow  them  together,  except  for  breeding  purposes,  after- 
'  ward.  As  soon  as  the  cocks  are  marketable,  sell  them,  reserving 
'  only  the  best  individuals  as  breeders,  with  little,  if  any,  regard  to 
'  consanguinity.  Keep  an  unlimited  supply  of  cracked  corn  before 
'  them  until  they  are  large  enough  to  eat  it  whole,  when  it  may  be 
'given  them  uncracked.  This,  with  grass,  is  their  main  diet. 
'  Give  also  some  variety  with  a  little  animal  food.  The  pullets 
'  should  begin  to  lay  early  in  October,  when  they  should  have 
'  a  plenty  of  fish-waste,  and  lime  in  some  form,  in  addition  to 
'  the  grain.      In  twelve  months  from  the  time  they  begin   to  lay 

*  Gej'clin's  Poultry  Breeding,  with  a  preface  by  Charles  L.  Flint.     Bos'.on  :  1867. 


LIVE    STOCK.  .  357 

'  they  should  produce  one  hundred  and  fifty  eggs  each,  and,  if 
'  properly  cared  for,  they  might  do  more.  As  soon  as  the  hens 
'  stop  laving  and  begin  to  moult,  kill  and  sell  them.  The  white 
'  Leghorns  are  always  ready  for  the  table. 

"  I  do  not  know  that  this  movable  coop  has  been  tried  on  a 
'  large  scale  ;  but  there  seems  to  be  no  reason  why  it  should  not 
'  prove  successful.  Grass  will  grow  wonderfully  under  it  ;  and 
'  this  could  be  used  either  for  soiling  or  for  hay.  Some  other 
'  conveniences  would,  of  course,  be  necessary  in  winter. 

"  A  coop  of  the  above-mentioned  size  would  accommodate  twelve 
'  laying  hens  ;  and  four  of  them  with  forty-eight  hens,  would 
'  probably  do  better  than  the  same  number  in  the  inclosure  plan, 
'and  avoid  the  necessary  investment  for  fences  and  repairs. 
'  Some  say  poultry  in  such  confinement,  when  all  their  wants  are 
'  supplied,  will  pay  better  than  when  running  at  liberty,  either  in 
'  growth,  fat,  or  eggs  ;  and  it  is  probably  true. 

''  Now,  if  one  coop  will  succeed,  or  if  one  inclosure  like  that 
'  described  will  succeed,  what  conceivable  reason  is  there  why 
'  any  number  should  not  ?  We  all  know  that  success  in  any 
'  thing  depends  as  much  upon  details  as  upon  plan  ;  without 
'  attention  to  either,  failure  is  certain  ;  with  only  one,  success 
'  can  be  but  partial." 

As  with  every  thing  else  on  the  farm,  the  profit  of  poultry- 
raising  must  be  sought  largely  in  some  extra  production, — either 
extra  size,  extra  early  maturity,  early  laying,  fine  varieties,  or 
extra  preparation  for  market, — in  short,  whatever  may  enable 
one  to  get  "  fancy  prices."  Very  early  in  the  spring,  or  late  in 
the  winter,  before  our  neighbors'  fowls  have  commenced  to  lay, 
if  we  can  stimulate  ours  to  the  plentiful  production  of  eggs,  we 
can  sell  them  for  twice  or  three  times  the  later  price,  while  the 
cost  of  the  stimulant  is  inconsiderable.  For  early  laying  two 
things  are  necessary  :  fi^'st^  very  early  pullets  of  the  spring  before  ; 
second^  warm  and  sunny  quarters.  If  to  these  we  add  stimulating 
food, — a  little  pepper,  a  little  chopped  roots  or  cabbage, — and 
especially  if  we  cook  the  grain,  we  may  hope  to  get  in  February 
eggs  for  which  we  should  otherwise  be  obliged  to  wait  until  April 


358  IIAXDY-BOOK    OF    UUSBANDBY. 

or  May.  Probably  it  would  be  most  profitable  to  sell  out  all  but 
the  breeding  stock  of  old  fowls  every  fall,  and  to  retain  from  our 
own  early  broods,  or  to  purchase  from  our  neighbors,  well-grown 
pullets  that  were  hatched  not  later  than  the  middle  of  April. 
Under  the  proper  treatment,  these  birds  will  commence  to  lay 
plentifully  about  Christmas,  and  will  give  many  eggs  before  com- 
mon flocks  commence  laying  at  all. 

As  the  best  means  for  explaining  my  idea  of  what  a  poultry- 
house  should  be,  I  add  the  following  description  of  the  house 
that   I   have  recently  built  at  Ogden  P'arm. 

Its  north  wall  is  a  well-laid  stone  fence,  five  feet  high,  well- 
pointed  with  cement  on  both  sides.  The  rear  plate  ot  the  roof  is 
laid  in  cement  on  the  top  of  this  wail,  and  the  openings  between 
the  sides  and  the  wall  are  closed  with  cement.  The  height  of 
the  plate  in  front  is  eight  feet  ;  the  batter,  or  slope  of  the  front, 
two  feet.  The  length  of  the  housj  is  twenty-five  feet.  The 
door  is  in  one  end.  The  sashes  are  made  like  those  used  in 
greenhouses,  with  only  longitudinal  bars,  the  glass  being  lapped 
one  pane  over  another,  with  no  putty  at  the  lap.  The  width 
between  the  bars  is  ten  inches.  The  sashes  are  let  in  at  the 
outside  of  the  upright  joists  supporting  the  roof  j  the  joists  pro- 
ject about  four  inches  inside  of  the  inner  face  of  the  sashes  ; 
and,  stretched  along  these  at  a  distance  of  about  five  inches  from 
the  glass,  is  a  netting,  (made  of  very  light  galvanized  wire,)  which 
cost  less  than  $io, — the  entire  cost  of  the  house  being  about 
$75.  The  nests  are  placed  (in  a  row  running  the  whole  length 
of  the  house)  immediately  under  the  windows.  The  perches 
(four  in  number)  are  raised  only  two  feci  from  the  ground,  and 
run  the  entire  length  of  the  building,  occupying  the  rear  halt  of 
the  house. 

Both  ends  and  the  roof  of  the  house  are  lined  with  lathing,  the 
space  between  which  and  the  outer  wall  is  filled  with  straw 
for  cold  weather.  The  ventilator  at  the  top  of  the  house  can  be 
opened  or  closed  as  the  temperature  may  require.  The  nests 
are  ^'  secret,"  but  so  arranged  that  thev  may  be  entire'v  opened 
and    swept    out   at    pleasure.      The   perches   are  placc:^   near  the 


LIVE    STOCK.  -  S59 

ground,  in  order  that  heavy  birds  may  not  injure  themselves  in 
flying  down  ;  and  they  are  all  movable  so  that  they  may  be  taken 
out  and  exposed  if  necessary  to  the  sun  and  rain  for  freshening, 
and  so  that  the  ground  beneath  the  perches  may  be  easily  re- 
moved, the  principle  of  the  earth  closet  being  adopted  for  the 
preservation  of  the  manure, — it  being  the  rule  to  mix  the  drop- 
pings about  twice  a  week  with  loose  dry  earth,  either  by  spading 
or  raking.  In  summer  time  the  sashes  can  be  removed,  and  the 
house  will  have  the  effect  simply  of  a  well-built  shed  open  only 
to  the  south. 

As  I  have  only  just  constructed  this  house,  I  cannot  speak  with 
the  authority  of  experience  concerning  it,  but  I  see  no  reason 
why  it  may  not  be  as  effective  as  it  is  simple  and  economical. 

Concerning  the  breed  of  fowls  which  it  is  most  profitable  to 
keep,  opinions  vary  so  much  that  it  would  be  well  for  each  man 
to  experiment  for  himself.  After  a  careful  consideration  of  all 
that  has  been  said  on  the  subject  during  the  past  few  years  by 
writers  for  agricultural  papers,  and  after  a  considerable  observa- 
tion of  different  flocks,  I  have  decided  upon  a  cross  between  the 
Brahma  Pootra  and  the  Gray  Dorking,  breeding  onlv  from 
Brahma  hens  and  Dorking  cocks.  The  progeny  of  these  birds 
are  quite  good  layers,  and  arrive  early  at  maturity,  growing  to  a 
good  size  ;  while  the  quiet  disposition  that  they  inherit  from  their 
mothers,  and  the  domestic  habits  that  these  teach  them,  especially 
adapt  them  for  confined  localities.  When  fattened  for  market, 
they  are  of  good  size  and  particularly  good  appearance. 

Among  the  pure  breeds,  all  things  considered,  especiallv  when 
they  must  be  confined  within  narrow  limits,  I  think  that  the 
Brahmas  are  the  best  of  those  with  which  we  are  familiar  ; 
although  the  French  breeds  of  Houdan  and  Crevecceur,  which  are 
being  actively  brought  into  notice,  have,  it  is  claimed,  some  advan- 
tages over  even  these.  I  have  no  personal  experience  with  them 
beyond  an  admiration  of  their  fine  proportions  and  beautiful  plu- 
mage, which  form  attractive  features  of  all  modern  poultry  shows. 

Among  turkeys,  the  Bronze  variety  probably  holds  the  highest 
place ;  and  among  ducks,  I  prefer  the  Rouen. 


360  HA-XDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

In  feeding  poultry,  quite  as  much  advantage  will  be  derived  from 
the  cooking  or  steaming  of  grain,  as  follows  from  the  adoption 
of  the  practice  with  any  other  stock  of  the   farm. 

Poultry  yaids,  except  for  temporary  use  at  planting  time,  are 
decidedly  objectionable  ;  and,  in  a  rather  extensive  experience  in 
market-gardening,  I  have  concluded  that  at  no  time  during  the 
year  do  fowls  do  so  much  harm  as  good  in  the  garden.  In  large 
fields  the  good  that  they  do  in  consuming  insects,  much  more  than 
compensates  for  their  slight  injury  to  the  crops  ;  but,  of  course, 
in  small  house-gardens,  where  a  few  square  yards  of  freshly  set 
plants  cannot  be  spared,  the  injury  that  they  do  is  proportionately 
much  greater,  and  for  a  little  while  they  had  better  be  kept  out  of 
the  garden. 


CHAPTER    XIV. 


SOILING     AND     PASTURING. 


There  is  one  improvement  in  agricultural  operations  which, 
although  it  originated  many  years  ago,  and  although,  in  certain 
parts  of  Europe,  and  in  a  very  (ew  instances  in  this  country,  it  is 
in  constant  and  successful  use,  has  made  far  less  progress  in  win- 
ning public  favor  among  farmers  than  it  was  at  first  supposed  that 
it  would.  The  practice  referred  to  is  that  of  feeding  cattle  during 
the  summer  season  entirely  in  the  stall  or  in  the  yard,  sowing  spe- 
cial crops  for  forage,  and  regularly  cutting  this  and  hauling  it  to 
the  feeding-place. 

The  reason  for  the  limited  adoption  of  the  system  of  soiling  is 
to  be  sought  in  the  scarcity  and  consequent  high  price  of  farm 
labor,  and  also  in  the  large  size  of  average  American  farms,  as 
compared  with  the  average  working  force  employed  upon  them. 
Not  only  is  it  found  expensive  and  annoying  to  a  farmer,  who  is 
short  of  help,  to  attend  daily,  and  several  times  a  day,  to  the  feed- 
ing of  cattle  ;  but  there  are  so  many  fields  on  our  farms,  as 
generally  arranged,  which  are  either  too  large  or  too  remote  from 
the  homestead  for  proper  cultivation,  that  the  only  resource  is  to 
make  use  of  their  crops  by  pasturing.  As  a  general  rule,  too, 
these  fields  are  too  poor  and  in  too  low  a  state  of  cultivation  to 
produce  enough  fodder  to  make  soiling  advisable. 

A  great  deal  has  been  said  in  deprecation  of  these  circumstances, 
and  it  is  commonly  recommended  that  farmers  employ  more  labor, 
that  they  bring  their  fields  to  a  higher  state  of  cultivation,  and  that 
they  do  many  other  things  which  the  best  agriculture  renders  desir- 
able.    But  I  am  not  disposed  to  join  the  popular  cry.   We  must  take 


362  HANDY-BOOK    OF    IIUSBAXDRY. 

facts  in  this  world  as  we  find  them,  and  we  can  hope  to  improve 
our  circumstances  only  very  gradually.  If  a  farmer  his  200  acres 
of  land,  and  only  two  or  three  hired  hands,  it  would  be  folly  for  him 
to  attempt  to  make  any  better  use  of  the  crops  of  his  grass- fields 
than  bv  grazing  his  animals  upon  them.  And  if  a  man  so  circum- 
stanced were  to  adopt  the  system  of  soiling,  he  would  necessarily 
neglect  other  very  important  parts  of  his  business,  and  would  find 
that  the  system  results  in  loss  rather  than  in  profit.  If  he  could 
judiciously  sell  one-halt  of  his  domain,  probably  he  would  find  it  to 
his  advantage  in  many  ways  to  do  so.  But  there  is  a  feeling  about 
the  ownership  of  broad  acres  which  will  gencrallv  undo  anv  argu- 
ment in  favor  of  their  reduction.  If  a  farmer  finds  it  practicable 
to  add  largely  to  his  working  force,  and  if  he  has  the  skill  and 
executive  power  to  manage  the  increased  force  successfullv,  there 
is  no  doubt  that  he  might  derive  great  advantage  from  the  adoption 
of  soiling.  But  unfortunately,  a  very  large  proportion  of  American 
farmers  would  find  it  impossible  either  to  emplov  or  to  house  a 
largely  increased  force  of  farm-hands  ;  and  a  great  many  of  them 
would  never  succeed  in  controlling  a  larger  number  of  men  than 
could  follow  themselves  in  any  given  piece  of  work.  To  all  such, 
then,  the  only  wise  recommendation  is,  that  they  adhere  to  their  old 
practices,  merely  watching  carefully  for  everv  opportunitv  for 
adopting  the  new  ones  when  circumstances  shall  allow  them  to 
do  so. 

For  those  who  own  small  farms,  and  who,  from  their  proximity 
to  thickly  settled  neighborhoods,  or  by  reason  of  any  special  cir- 
cumstances, may  be  able  to  employ  profitably  an  increased  num- 
ber of  men,  it  has  been  amplv  proven,  bv  experience  in  this  country 
and  in  Europe,  that  their  surest  road  to  the  most  successful  agricul- 
ture lies  in  the  practice  of  soiling  all  of  their  live  stock  which  cannot 
be  fed  upon  the  waste  corners  of  the  farm.  It  may  be  stated,  as  a 
general  principle,  that  any  land  which  will  properly  pasture 
throughout  the  season  one  cow  to  two  acres,  will,  at  least  after  a 
year  or  two  of  preparation,  produce  enough  if  its  crops  are  mowed 
and  carried  to  the  barn,  to  support  two  cows  to  one  acre.  And 
this  has  reference  only  to  the  growing  of  ordinary  forage  crops. 


SOILING    AND    PASTURING.  363 

such  as  clover,  rye,  oats,  and  sowed  corn.  Where  labor  is  still 
cheaper  and  the  land  is  worked  to  a  still  higher  degree,  it  is  pos- 
sible to  do  e\'en  much  more  than  this.  But  it  should  be  a 
sufficient  argument  to  say  that  the  ability  of  a  given  area  of  land 
to  support  animal  life  may  be,  by  soiling,  increased  fourfold. 

This  increased  ability  to  supply  food  is,  after  all,  only  one  of  the 
many  important  advantages  that  soiling  offers.  The  better  con- 
dition of  the  animals,  and  the  far  larger  quantity  of  disposable 
manure,  together  with  the  yearly  improving  condition  of  the  land 
itself,  both  in  texture  and  in  richness,  are  hardly  less  important. 

In  an  essay  read  before  the  Massachusetts  Agricultural  Society 
in  1S19,  by  Josiah  Quincy,  several  points  with  reference  to  the 
soiling  of  cattle  were  very  clearly  set  forth.  This  essay,  and 
another  on  the  same  subject,  have  recently  been  republished.  * 
Mr.  Quincy  enumerates  the  following  as  the  chief  advantages  of 
soiling  : — 

"  1st,  The  saving  of  land. 
"  2d,  The  saving  of  fencing. 
*'  3d,   The  economizing  of  food. 

''  4th,  The  better  condition  and  greater  comfort  of  the  cattle. 
''  5th,  The  greater  product  of  milk. 
"6th,  The  attainment  of  manure," 
and,  I  might  add — 

7th,  The  improvement  of  the  condition  of  the  soil. 

Concerning  the  saving  of  land^  the  fact  alluded  to  above,  that 
four  times  as  many  cattle,  or  even  more,  may  be  kept  by  soiling 
as  by  pasturing,  is  sufficiently  conclusive.  Strictly  speaking,  there 
is  hardlv  a  limit  to  the  production  that  is  possible  under  the  high- 
est cultivation,  but  probably  under  the  circumstances  of  ordinary 
farming  the  quadrupled  production  is  all  that  could  be  hoped  for. 
And  surely  this  is  sufficient  to  induce  any  one  who  can  con- 
veniently do  so  to  keep  his  stock  in  this  manner. 

The  saving  of  fencing^  which  was  discussed  at  length  In  the  chap- 

*  Essays  on  the  Soiling  of  Cattle,  etc.     By  Josiah  Quincy.     Boston  :  1866. 


3G4  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

ter  on  "  Fences,"  is  a  matter  of  great  consequence  ;  for  the  large 
amount  of  moncv,  or  what  is  equal  to  money — time  and  labor, 
expended  in  building  and  repairing  the  interior  fences  of  the  larm, 
is  often  appalling  -,  while  the  loss  bv  reasoning  of  the  shortening 
of  the  plow  furrow,  and  the  ground  occupied  by  the  fence  and 
headland,  and  the  excessive  growth  of  noxious  weeds  on  both  sides 
of  the  fence,  are  serious  arguments  in  favor  of  any  practice  by 
which  fences  may  be  entirely  done  away  with  or  their  extent 
reduced. 

The  econom'tzivg  of  food  is  an  economizing  of  the  very  elements 
of  all  agricultural  success,  for  the  first  object  of  all  farming  is  the 
production  of  food  for  men  and  animals ;  and  it  seems  worse  than 
waste  to  have  any  valuable  thing  that  the  farm  produces  destroyed 
without   return. 

Quincy  says,  "There  are  six  ways  by  which  beasts  destroy  the 
"article  destined  for  their  food, —  ist.  By  eating  ;  2d,  By  walk- 
*'ing;  3d,  By  dunging;  4th,  By  staling;  5th,  By  lying  down; 
"  6th,  By  breathing  on  it.  Of  these  six,  the  first  only  is  useful. 
*'  All  the  rest  are  wasteful. 

*'  By  pasturing,  the  five  last  modes  are  exercised  without  any 
*'  check  or  compensation.  By  keeping  in  the  house,  thev  may  be 
*'  all  prevented  totally  by  great  care,  and  almost  totally  by  very 
**  general  and  common  attention." 

Of  course,  it  is  not  to  be  inferred  from  this  that  animals  avail 
themselves  of  only  one-fifth  of  the  food  produced  by  the  field  on 
which  they  are  pastured.  But  any  farmer  will  at  once  admit  that 
the  amount  destroyed  in  the  various  ways  referred  to  is  very  great ; 
and  it  is  probably  even  greater  in  rich  pastures  than  in  poor  ones, 
for  the  reason  that  after  an  animal  has  once  filled  itself  it  seems  to 
devote  a  large  part  of  the  remaining  hours  of  the  day  to  the 
destruction  of  luxuriant  food  for  which  it  has  no  immediate  use. 
Whether  the  amount  wasted  is  small  or  great,  the  waste  may  be 
almost  entirely  prevented  by  cutting  and  hauling  to  some  other 
place  than  the  surface  of  the  field  on  which  the  crop  grows.  In 
soiling,  especially  in  stalls,  the  amount  of  food  administered  may 
be    exactly    adjusted   to  the    needs  of  the   animals.       They   may 


SOILING    AND    PASTURING.  365 

receive  at  each  feeding  exactly  the  quantity  that  they  will  entirely 
consume,  and  all  beyond  this  may  be  reserved  for  future  use  ;  while 
the  small  amount  of  rejected  herbage  will  be  ordinarily  only  so 
much  as  will  be  consumed  with  advantage  by  swine. 

With  regard  to  the  better  cotidition  and  greater  comfort  of  the  cattle^ 
there  is  a  sentimental  idea  that  the  advantage  lies  on  the  side  of 
the  pasturing  ;  and  the  most  prevalent  argument  advanced  in  this 
connection  is,  that  it  is  the  natural  way  for  animals  to  obtain 
their  food.  That  it  is  natural  is  undoubtedly  true  ;  and,  for 
animals  in  a  state  of  nature,  grazing,  being  the  only  means  of 
subsistence  possible,  is,  of  course,  the  best  means.  But  when  we 
withdraw  animals  entirely  from  a  state  of  nature,  and  reduce  them, 
or  elevate  them,  to  such  an  artificial  condition  as  shall  cause  them 
best  to  subserve  our  ends,  there  is  no  reason  why  unnatural  means 
may  not  be  with  ad\antage  adopted,  provided  they  result  in  no 
detriment  to  the  animals'  health,  comfort,  or  condition  The 
amount  of  exercise  required  to  maintain  the  health  of  any  domes- 
tic animal  is  not  great,  and  if  we  observe  the  conduct  of  cows  at 
pasture  we  shall  see  that  under  the  most  favorable  circumstances 
they  take  only  so  much  exercise  as  is  necessary  to  enable  them 
to  fill  their  stomachs  with  the  choicest  grasses  within  their  reach, 
and  that,  being  filled,  they  invariably  remain  quiet  until,  after 
rumination  is  completed,  they  need  food  again.  On  poor  pastures, 
where  a  half-starved  cow  is  obliged  to  walk  nearly  the  whole  day 
to  pick  up  a  scanty  subsistence,  there  is  no  doubt  that  one  of  the 
principal  causes  of  her  poor  condition  is  to  be  sought  in  the 
fact  that  she  has  been  obliged  to  take  more  than  the  proper 
amount  of  exercise. 

Ample  experience,  the  world  over,  has  clearly  demonstrated 
the  fact,  that,  with  proper  facilities  for  exercising  in  the  yard, 
cattle,  fed  regularly  with  nutritious  food  only  in  their  stalls,  are 
in  better  condition,  and  li\'e  longer  in  good  health,  than  do  those 
who  are  exposed  to  the  vicissitudes  of  the  weather,  and  to  the 
more  precarious  subsistence  that  natural  herbage  usually  affords. 
Mr.  Quincy  refers  to  the  assertion  of  a  writer  on  soiling,  to  the 
effect  that,   during   his   experience  with   a   large   herd,   kept  for 


366  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

several  years  in  thiswav,  "he  never  had  an  animal  essentially 
sick,  had  never  one  die,  and   had  never  one  miscarry." 

The  product  of  milk^  as  is  verv  ably  stated  by  Mr.  Q^iincy,  is 
greater  throughout  the  whole  season  than  under  the  svstem  of 
pasturini:,  although  there  is  no  doubt  that  during  the  few  weeks 
that  follow  the  first  turning  out  of  hav-fed  animals  on  to  luxuriant 
and  tempting  pastures,  the  production  of  the  field-fed  cows  is 
larger  than  that  of  the  stall-fed  ones  ;  but  this  excess  very  soon 
dwindles  to  an  equality,  and  then  falls  below  the  soiling  point. 
The  early  ripening  of  meadow-grasses,  renders  them  soon  less 
nutritious  and  less  tempting  ;  and  especially  the  pinching  effect  of 
long-continued  drought  reduces  the  average  yield  of  pastures  dur- 
ing the  whole  season  considerably  below  what  it  would  be,  if,  from 
the  first  opening  of  spring  until  the  closing  in  of  winter,  there 
were  never  a  day  when  the  food  was  not  ample  and  regularly  ad- 
ministered. In  pasturing  we  must  either  have  so  small  a  stock 
as  not  to  be  able  to  make  full  use  of  the  growth  of  the  early 
summer,  or,  if  wc  are  able  to  consume  that  entirelv,  must  see 
our  larger  herds  suffer  for  the  want  of  abundant  food  during  the 
season  of  less  luxuriant  growth. 

The  attauiment  of  manure^  which  is  so  greatly  facilitated  by 
the  soiling  svstem,  may  be  regarded  as  second  in  importance  only 
to  the  saving  of  land.  Indeed,  it  is  to  this  effect  of  soiling  that 
what  is  tcchnicallv  known  as  "high  farming"  looks  for  its 
greatest  support.  Of  course,  with  a  given  amount  of  food, 
animals  make  a  given  amount  of  dung,  and  whether  thev  eat  that 
food  in  the  fields  or  in  the  house  makes  no  difference  in  this  re- 
gard. But  in  the  field  the  dung  is  dropped  with  great  irregularity, 
and  principalK'  on  those  parts  which,  from  shelter,  shade,  dryness 
during  wet  weather,  or  other  causes,  are  chiefly  selected  by  the 
animals  for  their  resting-places.  So  far  as  the  dropping  of  manure 
during  the  feeding-time  of  the  animals  is  concerned,  more  will 
fall  upon  the  rich  land  than  upon  the  poor  ;  and  it  is  impossible, 
in  anv  ordinary  svstem  of  pasturing,  to  secure  anv  thing  like  an 
even  distribution  of  the  voidings  of  the  stock.  In  addition  to  this, 
a  very  large   proportion  of  the    value   of  the  manure,   especially 


SOILING    AND    PASTURING.  367 

of  COWS,  is  wasted  by  evaporation,  and  by  becoming  the  food  of 
myriads  of  insects.  The  urine  at  each  voiding  falls  only  upon 
a  limited  surface,  and  there  is  nothing  like  a  proper  distribution 
of  its  fertilizing  elements  over  the  whole  soil.  It  is  doubtful,  also, 
whether  this  deposit  of  manure  upon  the  surface  of  the  land^ 
during  the  hottest  season  of  the  year,  is  the  most  economical. 
And  even  if  there  were  no  waste,  and  no  concentration  of  the 
manure  on  certain  parts  of  the  field  to  the  deprivation  of  other 
parts,  the  fact  that  the  application  is  not  under  the  control  of  the 
farmer,  and  that,  as  a  ruTe,  the  land  pastured  this  year  is  not  most 
in  need  of  this  year's  manure,  would  be  sufficient  to  re-enforce 
whatever  argument  may  be  advanced  against  the  custom.  To 
have  a  large  quantity  of  manure  made  under  cover,  and  kept 
under  such  circumstances  as  to  suffer  very  little,  if  any,  waste, 
is  of  an  importance  which  all  farmers  will  readily  acknowled2;e  ; 
and  the  ability  to  control  the  application  of  this  manure  at  will 
is  of  great  consequence,  I  know,  from  my  own  experience  in 
the  stall-feeding  of  animals,  that  the  amount  of  manure  made 
in  this  way  is  enough  to  amaze  any  farmer  who  is  not  familiar 
with  the  practice.  And  not  only  is  the  quantity  of  the  manure 
itself  increased,  but,  by  adding  to  it  muck,  dry  earth,  or  other 
similar  refuse,  its  valuable  parts  may  be  distributed  throughout  a 
still  greater  mass  of  material,  enabling  us  to  spread  it  more  evenly 
over  the  ground. 

In  all  well-arranged  soiling-barns  the  manure  is  received  in  a 
cellar  under  the  animals,  or  in  well-covered  sheds  behind  them, 
both  of  which  are  protected  against  the  draining  away  or  waste  of 
the  manure.  Therefore  in  this  respect  there  is  absolutely  no 
waste,  and  it  is  a  source  of  great  satisfaction  to  the  farmer  to  feel 
that  he  has  the  fertilizing  capital  of  the  whole  farm  completely 
under  his  control,  and  that  he  is  able  to  apply  it  in  such  quantities 
as  he  deems  best  to  the  fields  on  which  it  will  do  the  most 
good. 

The  following  quotation  from  Mr.  Ouincy's  first  essay  will 
illustrate  the  truth  of  the  foregoing  statements  : — 

'*  The  twenty  head  consumed  the  product  of 
24 


;3(J8  IIAXDY-BOOK    OF    UUSBAXDKY. 

2  1-2  acres,  road -sides  and  orchard 


3 

" 

mowing-land. 

3 

1-4  " 

Indian  corn  cut  as  fodder. 

2 

" 

late  and  liglit  barley. 

3 

(( 

oats. 

2 

« 

late-sown  Indian  corn  after  a  pea-crop. 

1-4  " 

buckwheat. 

I 

(( 

millet,  buckwheat,  and  oats. 

17       acres. 

"  I'his  is  the  whole  land  which  was  cut  over  for  soiling,  with 
*■*■  the  exception  of  the  after-feed  on  the  mowing  land,  and  ilie  tops 
*' of  carrots  and  turnips.  In  comparing  this  result  wiih  the  for- 
*'  mer  practice  of  my  farm,  I  apprehend  the  following  statement  to 
''  be  just  : — 

"  I  offset  the  keeping  from  the  iith  of  September  to  the  20th 
"  of  No\ember  against  the  old  manner  of  letting  the  cattle  run  at 
*'  large  during  the  autumn  months  on  the  mowing-land  to  its  great 
"  injury,  by  poaching  and  close  feeding.  If  this  should  not  be 
*' deemed  sufficient,  I  then  make  no  estimate  of  the  difFerence 
*■'■  between  keeping  fifteen  head  of  cattle,  the  old  stock,  and  twenty 
**  head  of  cattle,  my  present  stock.  After  these  allowances  and  ofF- 
*•■  sets  (which  no  man  can  doubt  are  sufficiently  liberal),  then  I  state 
"  that  my  experiment  has  resulted  in  relation  to  land,  in  this,  that  I 
*' have  kept  the  same  amount  of  stocky  ly  soUhig^on  seventeen  acres  of 
*'  land^  ivhich  had  always  previously  required  fifty  acres.  The  result 
*'  is,  in  my  opinion,  even  in  this  respect,  greater  than  what  is  here 
*' stated.  This,  however,  is  sufficient  to  exhibit  the  greatness  of 
*'  the  economy  of  this  mode,  so  far  as  relates  to  land. 

"  With  respect  to  saving  of  fencing,  the  previous  condition  of 
*'  my  farm  was  this.  I  had,  at  the  lowest  estimate,  five  miles  of 
"  interior  fence,  (equal  to  sixteen  hundred  rods,)  which,  at  one  dol- 
"  lar  the  rod,  was  equal,  in  original  cost,  to  sixteen  hundred  dol- 
*'  lars,  and  annually,  for  repairs  and  refitting,  cost  sixty  dollars. 
"  I  have  now  not  one  rod  of  interior  fence.  Of  course,  this  saving  is 
"great,  distinct,  and  undeniable. 

*'  In  relation  to  manures,  the  efl^ect  of  soiling  is  not  less  apparent 
*' and  unquestionable.      The  exact  amount  of  summer  product  I 


SOILING    AXD    TASTURING.  369 

"  have  not  attempted  to  ascertain  ;  but  I  am  satisfied,  that,  every 
"thing  considered,  it  is  not  less  than  one  buck-load  per  month  per 
"  head  ;  or,  on  twenty  head  of  cattle,  one  hundred  and  twenty 
"  loads  for  the  six  soiling  months.  In  this  estimate,  I  take  into 
"consideration  the  advantage  resulting  from  the  urir.e  saved  by 
"means  of  loam,  sand,  or  seme  imbibing  recipient,  prepared  to 
"  absorb  it. 

"  It  remains  to  show  that  the  cost  of  raising  the  food,  cutting 
"it,  ard  distributing  it  to  the  cattle,  is  compensated  bv  ihete 
"  savings.  Upon  tliis  point,  my  own  experience  has  satisfied  me 
"that  the  value  of  the  manure  alone  is  an  ample  compensation  for 
"all  this  expense  ;  leaving  the  saving  of  land,  of  food,  and  of 
"  fencing-stuff,  as  well  as  the  better  condition  of  the  cattle,  as  a 
"  clear  gain  from  the  system.  As  an  evidence  of  tliis  I  state  my 
"  expenses  for  labor  in  conducting  the  soiling  process. 

"  During  the  month  of  June,  I  hired  a  man  to  do  e\  ery  tl.irg 
"  appertaining  to  the  soiling  process — that  is,  cutting  the  food, 
*'  delivering  it,  taking  care  of  the  cattle  in  the  day-time — for 
"  fifteen  dollars  the  month,  he  finding  himself.  In  this  arrar.ge- 
"  ment,  it  was  estimated  that  I  availed  myself  of  half  his  h.bcr. 
"  At  the  end  of  the  month  I  had  the  manure  measured  ;  and  I 
"  found  that  the  manure  collected  in  my  receptacle,  (which  was  a 
"  cellar  under  the  barn,)  and  not  including  that  which  had  been 
"  made  during  the  four  hours  each  day  in  the  yard,  amounted  to 
*'  fifteen  loads, — a  quantity  of  manure  which  I  could  not  have 
"  placed  on  my  farm  for  thirty  dollars  ;  and  which  I  could  have 
"  sold  there  for  twenty  dollars,  upon  the  condition  it  should  be 
"  carried  away.  It  cost  me,  as  above  stated,  fifteen  dollars  in  the 
"  labor  of  the  attendant. 

"  During  the  remaining  five  months,  I  added  another  man,  be- 
"  cause  I  found  that  a  great  economy  in  vegetable  food  would 
*' result  from  cutting  it  into  pieces  by  a  cutting-knife,  and  mixing 
"  with  it  about  one-third  of  cut  salt  hay  or  straw.  This  was 
"  done  ;  and  I  kept  an  accurate  account  of  all  the  labor  of  cutting 
"  the  food  in  the  field,  bringing  it  into  the  barn,  cutting  it  up  there, 
"  cutting  salt  hay  or  straw  to  mix  with  it,  mixing  this  food,  and 


370  II  ANDY-BOOK    OF    II  U  S  11  A  X  D  R  Y  . 

*' deliveriii":  it  to  the  cattle:  and  found  that  it  amounted  to  one 
"  hundred  and  forty-eight  days'  labor.  This,  estimated  at  a  dollar 
"  the  day,  is  one  hundred  and  fortv-cight  dollars  ;  to  which  adding 
"  fifteen  dollars  paid  for  labor  in  the  month  of  June,  the  whole 
"  expense  was  one  hundred  and  sixty-three  dollars. 

"  The  manure,  at  the  end  of  the  soiling  season,  certainly 
**  equaled  one  hundred  and  twenty  loads  ;  and  could  not  have 
*'  been  bounht  and  brouirht  there  for  three  hundred  dollars.  Let 
"  it  be  estimated  at  only  two  hundred  dollars  in  value.  No  man 
*'  can  question,  I  think,  the  correctness  of  my  assertion,  that  the 
*'  value  of  the  manure  obtained  is  a  clear  compensation  for  this 
"  amount  of  labor  ;  and  this  including  all  the  expense  of  labor  con- 
*'  nected  with  soiling. 

"•  It  remains  to  be  shown  in  what  manner  the  whole  process 
*'  ought  to  he  conducted  by  any  one  who  may  originally  attempt 
"  it,  and  also  how  far  it  is  applicable  to  the  farming  condition  of 
*'  New  England,  and  what  species  of  farmers  would  find  their 
"  account  in  attempting  it, 

"  As  to  the  manner  in  which  the  soiling  process  ought  to  be 
"  conducted,  besides  that  general  care  and  personal  superintendence 
"  (at  least  occasionally,  and  by  way  of  oversight)  which  is  essential 
''  to  success  in  this  as  in  every  other  business  in  life,  three  general 
*'  objects  ought  to  claim  the  attention  of  every  farmer  or  other 
*'  person  who  undertakes  this  process. 

"i.  Provision  against  seasons  of  extraordinary  drought,  or 
"deficiency  of  general  crop  from  any  other  natural  accident. 

"  2.  Succession  of  succulent  food  during  the  whole  soiling  sea- 
*' son,  and  facility  of  its  attainment. 

"  3.  Preparation  relative  to  care  of  the  stock,  and  increase  of 
"  manure, — the  particular  objects  of  the  soiling  process." 

Concerning  the  crops  to  be  raised  for  soiling,  it  is  not  possible 
lo  give  such  specific  directions  as  will  be  applicable  to  all  parts  of 
the  country,  nor  even  to  the  circumstances  of  different  farms  in 
the  same  district.  In  many  instances,  the  luxurious  growth  of 
meadows  and  clover-fields,  together  with  the  cuttings  at  the  sides 
of  lanes  and   on  the  ground  about  the  house,  etc.,  will  be  a  very 


SOILING    AND    PASTURING.  371 

important  item  of  the  supply  of  food.  In  others,  it  will  be  found 
best  to  depend  almost  entirely  upon  crops  raised  exclusively  for 
this  purpose.  The  principle,  under  all  circumstances,  is  the  same, 
and  it  is  a  very  simple  one,  namely, — to  get  the  largest  possible 
quantity  of  nutritious,  succulent  food  from  the  smallest  possible 
area  of  land,  and  to  constantly  re-invigorate  the  land  whh  the  ex- 
cessive quantity  of  manure  resulting  from  the  feeding  of  its  crops  ; 
so  that,  year  by  year,  its  productiveness  may  be  increased,  and  that 
it  may  yearly  carry  a  larger  number  of  animals. 

As  an  illustration,  rather  than  as  a  series  of  directions,  I  give 
herewith  the  system  which  was  adopted  in  1869  for  the  soiling  of 
about  thirty  animals,  old  and  young,  at  Ogden  Farm.  As  the  land 
had  but  recently  come  into  my  possession,  after  years  of  leasing  and 
skinning,  and  as  it  is  now  very  far  from  being  in  proper  condition 
for  the  best  results  of  soiling,  I  make  no  reference  to  the  quantity 
of  land  sowed  to  each  crop,  as  prudence  required  me  to  make  this 
very  much  larger  than  on  any  average  farm  would  have  been  de- 
sirable. I  simply  took  care  to  provide  for  the  production  of  more 
than  could  possibly  be  required,  adopting  the  practice  of  cutting 
and  curing  for  winter  use  whatever  might  be  left  standing  on  one 
field  when  its  successor  was  ready  for  the  scythe.  I  have  already 
seen  enough  to  convince  me  that  within  a  very  few  years  I  shall 
be  able  to  feed  a  full-grown  animal  abundantly  from  the  produce 
of  a  single  half-acre  during  the  whole  season  from  May  15  to 
November  15  ;  and  it  seems  evident  that  the  increased  production 
from  one  year  to  the  next  will  be  in  constantly  growing  propor- 
tion, the  fertility  of  the  land  being  improved,  not  only  in  the  ratio 
of  the  amount  of  manure  applied,  but  also  according  to  the 
number  of  cultivations  and  the  absence  of  the  injurious  effect 
of  the  feet  of  animals  pasturing  upon  it. 

The  preparation  consists  in  the  sowing  of  winter  rye  early  in 
September.  In  exceptional  seasons  this  rye  may,  with  advantage, 
be  mowed  over  late  in  November,  but  ordinarily  it  had  better  be 
left  untouched.  Early  in  the  winter,  when  the  ground  is  so 
frozen  that  it  will  bear  the  treading  of  teams,  it  should  be  top- 
dressed  with  rather  coarse  stable  manure,  which  serves  not  only  as 


372  II  ANDY-BOOK     OF     UUSBANDRY. 

a  direct  fertilizer,  but  as  a  mulch  to  protect  the  crop  from  the 
injurious  effect  of  too  frequent  freezing  and  thawing,  and  of  violent 
winds. 

In  the  autumn,  before  the  ground  becomes  too  wet,  a  consider- 
able area  is  plowed  up  and  made  ready  for  spring  planting.  As 
early  in  the  spring  as  it  is  possible  to  go  on  to  this  land  with 
teams,  without  injuring  its  texture,  it  is  once  lightly  harrowed, 
then  sowed  with  oats,  and  these  thoroughly  harrowed  in, — the  land, 
however,  not  being  rolled,  as  the  clods  will  afford  a  certain  pro- 
tection against  late  frosts  and  high,  cold  winds.  This  sowing 
should  always  be  made  early  in  April,  or,  if  the  weather  will  admit, 
even  in  March.  The  commencement  of  its  growth,  however, 
may  always  be  dated,  in  the  latitude  of  New  York,  from  about 
the  loth  or  15th  of  April..  The  only  object  in  getting  the  seed 
in  before  this  time  is  to  get  the  work  out  of  the  way,  and  to  insure 
its  being  planted  in  ample  season  for  the  earliest  growing  weather. 

About  the  first  of  May  another  tract,  which  had  been  plowed 
in  the  fall,  is  prepared  in  precisely  the  same  manner  and  sown 
with  oats.  About  the  middle  of  IVIav,  or  as  soon  as  the  plants  are 
strong  enough  to  bear  the  treatment,  these  two  fields,  if  the  land 
is  dry  and  in  good  condition,  should  be  neatly  rolled  down. 

It  will  be  well,  also,  to  make  another  sowing  of  oats  or  barley 
as  late  as  the  middle  of  May,  but  from  the  tenth  of  May  until  the 
first  of  August  sowed  corn  should  be  put  in,  on  a  separate  piece 
about  every  two  weeks.  That  first  planted  will  be  large  enough  to 
cut  late  in  July  or  earlv  in  August,  and  throughout  the  whole  of 
August  and  September,  and  often  far  into  October,  corn  may  be 
relied  upon  as  the  chief  soiling-crop,  and  both  the  quantity  per 
acre  and  the  value  of  the  material  as  food,  make  it  almost  the 
best  of  all  soiling-crops. 

In  addition  to  the  foregoing,  a  considerable  area  of  grass  or 
clover  should  be  well  manured  and  kept  in  all  respects  in  the  best 
condition  j  and  the  hay  crop  being  early  taken  off,  the  aftermath 
should  be  stimulated  to  the  greatest  possible  extent.  For,  in 
exceptional  seasons,  or  as  the  result  of  circumstances  which  can- 
not be  foreseen,  it  might  become  necessary  to  depend  very  largely 


SOILING    AND    PASTURING.  373 

upon  our  best  grass  to  help  out  deficient  crops  upon  the  soiling 
ground.  Of  course,  the  better  the  conditio  i  of  the  land,  and  the 
longer  it  has  been  used  for  soiling,  the  less  will  be  the  liability  of 
such  requirement. 

In  favorable  seasons,  the  soiling  commences  about  the  15th  of 
May,  at  which  time  rye,  sown  upon  good  land,  will  be  high  enough 
for  cutting  to  be  advantageously  commenced,  and  it  should  be 
commenced  some  time  before  the  crop  heads  out.  P'eeding  from 
this  crop  may  be  continued  until  the  grain  is  pretty  well  formed, 
but  it  should  not  be  continued  after  the  straw  begins  to  grow  hard 
and  yellow.  That  portion  of  the  rye  which  was  cut  oft,  after 
heading  out,  will  produce  nothing  more,  but  that  which  was  first 
cut  will  have  shot  up  again,  and  will  generally  be  ready  for  a 
second  cutting  by  the  time  the  whole  field  has  been  gone  over. 
Matters  should  be  so  arranged  that  the  rye  will  last  until  the  early 
part  of  June,  when,  unless  the  area  of  rye  is  very  large,  the  reli- 
ance for  two  or  three  weeks  must  be  upon  clover  and  grass  which 
have  been  top-dressed  for  a  heavy  crop. 

Late  in  June,  the  earliest  sown  oats  will  begin  to  be  fit  for  the 
scythe,  and  cutting  upon  them,  and  again  upon  the  second  and 
third  sowings,  may  be  continued  until  the  straw  commences  to 
grow  hard.  They  should  form  the  chief  reliance  until  about  the 
first  of  August,  when  the  sowed  corn  will  be  large  enough  for 
cutting.  With  this,  as  with  the  rye,  that  cut  in  an  early  stage  of 
its  growth  will  shoot  up  again  and  give  a  good  second  crop.  By 
the  aid  of  these  second  and  third  cuttings,  the  corn  should  be  able 
to  furnish  all  that  will  be  required,  until  the  danger  of  frost  makes 
it  necessary  to  cut  it  up  for  curing.  After  this,  for  a  short  time, 
the  second  growth,  or  aftermath,  of  the  mowing  lands,  may  be 
resorted  to  ;  and  when  the  grass  begins  to  lose  condition,  and 
even  far  into  December,  the  leaves  of  carrots,  mangel-wurzels,  and 
rutabagas,  will  form  a  valuable  addition  to  the  food  ;  and  they  and 
imperfectly  developed  cabbages  may  be  used  to  usher  in  the  slowly 
commencing  feeding  of  hay  and  dried  soiling  crops.  If  the  leaves, 
cabbages,  etc.,  are  properly  protected  at  this  cool  season  of  the 
year,  they  may  be  kept   fresh   and   succulent  pretty   nearly    urtil 


374  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

Christmas  time,  and  if  roots  and  cabbages  have  been  raised  in 
sufficient  quantity  to  furnish  an  important  supply  of  food  in  this 
way,  the  roots  and  cabbages  themselves  will  after  that  furnish 
an  ample  supply  of  fresh  vegetable  food. 

The  prevailing  argument  against  the  soiling  svstem,  and  one 
which  naturally  has  great  weight  with  nearly  all  farmers,  is  founded 
upon  the  scarcity  and  high  price  of  labor.  Scarcity,  if  the  scarcity 
exist  to  such  an  extent  as  to  withdraw  the  article  from  the  market, 
is  an  argument  to  which  there  is  no  reply  ;  but  if  it  is  only  suffi- 
cient to  create  a  high  price,  there  is  very  much  to  be  said  on  the 
other  side  of  the  question.  If  a  farmer  is  so  circumstanced  that 
he  can,  even  for  high  wages,  always  be  sure  of  hiring  additional 
help,  and  if  his  domestic  arrangements  are  such  that  he  can 
increase  his  force  without  abusing  his  family,  there  are  few  good 
farms,  with  properly  arranged  buildings,  upon  which  soiling  will 
not  pay  a  handsome  profit.  Probably  in  feeding  twenty  cows  the 
extra  labor  of  planting,  cutting,  and  feeding,  and  hauling  out  and 
spreading  manure,  would  require,  during  six  months  of  the  year, 
the  services  of  one  man  and  one  yoke  of  oxen.  This  may  be  set 
down  as  a  permanent  increase  of  the  expenses  of  the  farm,  and  in 
average  regions  it  would  probably  amount  to  8400  each  year. 
The  abundant  pasturage  of  twenty  cows  would  require  forty  acres 
of  good  land,  worth  say  $150  per  acre,  or  ^6,000.  In  soilingthey 
would  require  but  ten  acres  of  land,  worth  $1,500,  leaving  to  be 
charged  to  the  pasturage  svstem  a  capital  sum  of  $4,500,  upon 
which  the  interest,  at  seven  per  cent.,  would  be  $315.  The  pro- 
duct of  manure  would  probably  be  at  the  rate  of  one  two-horse 
load  per  month  for  each  cow,  or  120  loads.  It  is  not  easy  to  fix 
the  value  of  this  manure,  as  it  must,  of  course,  vary  in  different 
localities.  In  Rhode  Island  it  would  be  worth  three  dollars  a 
load,  and  in  all  of  the  older  settled  portions  of  New  England, 
especially  in  the  neighborhood  of  good  markets,  it  would  probably 
be  worth  pretty  nearly  that  amount.  As  we  proceed  farther  west, 
the  value  of  the  manure  will  decrease  until  it  finally  reaches 
the  zero  point.  However,  as  it  is  quite  certain  that  soiling  will 
not  be  adopted  except  where  manure  has  a  high  value,  it  will  be 


SOTLIXG    AND    PASTURING.  375 

fair  to  assume  that  the  quantity  of  manure  specified  above  will  be 
worth  $250  ; — and  if  we  allow  ^65  as  the  value  of  the  manure 
dropped  upon  the  pasture  under  the  pasturing  system,  we  shall 
have,  in  the  two  items  of  interest  and  manure,  $500  return  for 
0400  expended  in  labor,  leaving  a  profit  of  twentv-fi\e  per  cent. 

T!  his  is  not,  in  itself, a  particularlv  brilliant  showing  ;  for,  under 
many  circumstances,  the  simple  item  of  contingencies  would  not 
unfrequently  consume  the  entire  profit  ; — but  the  following  facts 
are  to  be  considered  :  first^  the  man  and  team  employed  for  the 
soiling  work  will  render  valuable  assistance  at  harvest  time,  and 
whenever  the  work  of  the  farm  is  hurried,  and  will  regularly  do  a 
considerable  amount  of  outside  work  ;  second.,  the  condition  of  the 
animals  will  be  much  better  than  when  they  are  pastured  in 
the  field  ;  third.,  the  product  of  milk  will  be  larger  ;  fourth.,  the 
chances  that  butter,  cheese,  or  milk  will  have  their  taste  affected 
by  wild  onion  and  other  high-flavored  weeds  will  be  reduced  \  fifth., 
the  time  wasted,  and  the  derangement  of  farm-work  encountered 
in  driving  cattle  to  and  from  the  pasture  will  be  entirely  obviated; 
sixth.,  the  fertility  of  the  farm  will  be  immensely  increased. 

The  first  five  of  the  advantages  enumerated  may  be  set  down 
as  incidental  benefits,  which  will  be  sufficient  to  offset  the  con- 
tingencies which,  in  their  turn,  may  offset  the  25  per  cent,  profit 
on  the  expense.  But  the  last,  the  question  of  increased  fertility, 
while  it  is  an  element  to  which  it  is  impossible  to  attach  a  money 
value,  is  of  far  greater  importance  than  all  of  the  others  combined. 
Indeed,  I  have  not  the  least  hesitation  in  saying,  that  the  fertility 
of  any  average  land  devoted  exclusively  to  the  soiling  of  cattle,  and 
receiving  all  of  the  manure  produced  by  them  during  the  soiling 
season,  will  be  doubled  in  five  years,  and  the  value  of  the  land  will 
be  d'oubled  as  well.  Whether  it  would  double  again  in  the  next 
five  years  is  by  no  means  certain,  but  that  it  would,  at  the  end 
of  twenty  years,  be  permanently  worth  for  cultivation  four  times 
its  original  price  is  unquestionable.  The  frequent  cultivation, 
usually  twice  in  the  season  and  sometimes  three  times,  the  im- 
mense amount  of  the  very  best  of  all  farm  manures  applied  yearly 
to  the  soil,  and  the  almost  entire  absence  of  the  treading  of  ani- 


376  II  ANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

mals,  this  being  confined  entirely  to  the  seasons  of  working,  will 
ohviouslv  add  almost  incalculably  to  the  fertility  of  any  soil  no^ 
already  in  the  condition  of  a  garden.  Land  which  this  year  will 
soil  twenty  head  of  cattle,  should,  fiye  years  hence,  soil  at  least 
thirty  under  the  same  general  treatment  ;  while  it  will  haye  been 
raised  to  such  a  condition  of  fertility  that  it  may  be  repeatedly 
cropped  with   grain  with  the  certainty  of  the  very  best  results. 

Without  greatly  increasing  and  greatly  modifying  the  labor  of 
cultivation,  it  will  be  difficult  to  make  use  of  the  entire  accumu- 
lated fertility  of  land  that  has  been  used  for  soiling  for  a  number 
of  years.  It  would  be  better,  therefore,  to  use  the  practice  as  a 
means  of  increasing  the  fertility  of  different  parts  of  the  farm  con- 
secutively, and  thereby  putting  them  in  a  condition  for  the  pro- 
duction of  larger  and  more  profitable  crops  of  grain  or  of  irrass. 

The  arrangements  necessary  for  soiling  may  be  very  simple. 
They  should,  however,  in  all  cases  comprise  easy  facilities  for 
distributing  the  food,  perfect  shelter  for  the  manure,  shade  and 
good  ventilation  for  the  animals  themselves,  conyenient  appliances 
for  watering,  and,  above  all,  ample  exercising  grounds.  It  is  im- 
possible to  keep  animals  in  a  state  of  the  highest  health  if  they 
are  constantly  tied  in  their  stalls  j  and  there  should  be  in  connec- 
tion with  the  barn  or  shed,  a  good,  dry,  partly  shaded,  and  large 
yard,  into  which  the  animals  may  be  turned  whenever  the  weather 
is  favorable,  and  where  it  will  generally  be  found  advantageous  to 
allow  them  to  remain  three  or  four  hours  every  day  ;  the  custom 
being,  usually,  to  turn  them  out  at  eight  in  the  morning,  bringing 
them  in  at  ten  for  their  second  feed,  turning  them  out  again  at 
three  after  their  third  feed,  and  bringing  them  in  again  for  the 
fourth  feed  at  five,  another  liberal  feed  following  during  or  after 
the  evening  milking. 

Opinions  vary  somewhat  as  to  the  condition  in  which  it  is  best 
to  administer  the  food.  Some  give  it  to  the  animals  when  it  is 
freshly  cut  and  full  of  ju'ce,  while  others  prefer  to  let  it  wilt  for 
a  few  hours  before  being  taken  into  the  barn.  Aly  own  opinion  is 
that  the  fresh  feeding  is  the  most  natural,  and  productive  of  the  best 
results,  although  the  excessive  succulence  of  the  food  may  at  first 


SOILING    AND    PASTURING.  '        377 

have  a  loosening  effect  upon  the  bowels  of  the  animals,  which  will 
render  it  necessary  to  give  them  one  feed  each  day  of  dry  hay  or 
dried  soiling  fodder.  In  practice,  there  will  always  be  more  cut 
than  can  be  fed  at  once,  and  in  this  way  the  stock  will  receive 
enough  wilted  food  to  modify  the  laxative  tendency  of  that  which 
has  been  given  to  them  fresh.  By  reference  to  the  plan  and 
description  of  the  barn  and  yards  at  Ogden  Farm,  it  will  be  seen 
that  all  of  these  requirements  have  there  been  provided  for  ;  and 
in  any  case  in  which  it  is  deemed  advisable  to  construct  a  large 
and  rather  expensive  barn  the  soiling  facilities  may  probably  be 
attained  as  cheaply  in  the  regular  stalls  as  in  any  other  way  ;  but 
if  a  special  shed  is  to  be  erected,  as  an  addition  to  already  existing 
farm  buildings,  it  will  be  sufficient  to  make  a  drive-way  in  front 
of  the  stalls,  through  which  the  carts  can  be  directly  led,  the  grass 
being  thrown  on  the  ground  at  the  sides  of  the  alley.  The  chief 
objection  to  sheds  built  directly  upon  the  ground,  even  where  the 
site  is  very  well  drained,  lies  in  the  fact  that  it  is  difficult  to  re- 
move the  large  am.ount  of  manure  without  either  exposing  it  to  the 
weather  or  rendering  the  shed  untidy  and  inconvenient. 

To  end  this  chapter  in  the  spirit  in  which  it  was  commenced, 
it  may  be  well  to  restate  the  opinion,  that  while  soiling  offers  im- 
mense advantages  to  the  owners  of  small  farms,  near  to  good 
markets,  and  in  localities  where  extra  labor  can  be  obtained  with- 
out difficulty,  it  must  work  its  way  slowly  to  the  favor  of  those 
who  are  not  so  circumstanced  ;  and,  taking  a  larger  view  of  its 
influence  on  the  general  agriculture  of  the  country,  it  is  not  so 
likely  that  it  will  be  widely  adopted  upon  large  farms  as  it  is  that 
it  will  make  farmers  content  with  small  ones,  and  that  it  will 
hasten  the  happy  day  when  American  farmers  generally  shall 
realize  the  fact  that  the  road  to  their  best  prosperity  lies,  not 
through  broad  fields  covered  by  their  parchments,  but  through 
deep  furrows  in  their  well-enriched  land  ;  and  when  their  accu- 
mulated capital  will  be  invested  neither  in  bank-stocks  nor  on 
bond  and  mortgage,  nor  yet  in  more  land,  but  in  such  improve- 
ments on  that  already  owned  as  shall  double  its  value  and  quad- 
ruple its  profits. 


CHAPTER    XV. 

MEDICAL    AND    SURGICAL    TREATMENT    OF    DOMESTIC    ANIMALS. 

I  SHALL  offer  no  apology  for  taking  the  material  of  this  chapter 
almost  exclusivelv  from  the  writings  of  others.  The  question  of 
the  diseases  of  domestic  animals  is  one  of  such  great  importance 
that  it  has  recei\cd  a  good  share  of  the  attention  of  able  men  for 
many  years.  Old  and  barbarous  practices,  which  entailed  more 
suffering  than  benefit  upon  the  poor  brutes,  are  being  rapidly 
given  up,  and,  under  the  light  afforded  by  considerate  and 
thoughtful  men,  the  treatment  of  even  the  most  severe  cases  is  at 
least  much  more  humane  than  it  formerly  was,  and,  in  proportion 
to  its  humanity,  is  undoubtedly  more  successful. 

Unfortunately,  as  in  the  case  of  the  treatment  of  the  diseases 
of  the  human  race,  nearly  all  recipes  and  instructions  are  more 
or  less  empirical,  the  administering  of  medicines  belonging,  as 
yet,  by  no  means  to  the  list  of  "  exact  sciences."  The  most 
that  can  be  said  in  favor  of  the  directions  of  veterinary  surgeons 
is,  that  they  have,  especially  during  the  last  twenty  years,  devoted 
an  untiring  energy  and  sound  judgment  to  an  in\estigation  of  the 
causes  of  disease  and  of  the  effects  of  remedies  ;  and  that  they 
have,  as  a  consequence,  rejected  many  things  that  were  formerly 
considered  of  absolute  necessity,  and  have  substituted  simple 
remedies  for  severe  ones. 

It  has  now  come  to  be  a  recognized  fact  with  veterinary  sur- 
geons, livery-stable  keepers,  and  intelligent  farmers,  that  the 
sovereign  remedy  for  external  injuries,  and  for  all  strains,  bruises, 
irritations,  and  cutaneous  affections,  is  ivater.  Applied  hot  or 
cold,  as  the  occasion  may  require,  and  accompanied  by  the  neces- 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT   OF   DOMESTIC    ANIMALS.     379 

sary  bandaging,  blanketing,  and  fomentations,  it  is  fast  driving  the 
firing-iron  and  the  blister,  with  the  inexpressible  suffering  that 
they  have  caused,  out  of  the  stable  and  the  shed.  With  regard 
to  internal  remedies  and  medicines,  the  scientific  and  practical 
worlds  are  yet  apparently  far  from  having  reached  a  point  entirely 
satisfactory  even  to  themselves.  But  the  tendency  is  undoubtedly 
in  favor  of  a  greater  dependence  on  the  natural  restorative 
agencies  of  diet,  fresh  air,  and  suitable  temperature.  Old-fashioned 
grooms  still  have  their  mysterious  secrets  concerning  the  com- 
position of  "  balls,"  and  their  peculiar  ways  of  crowding  them 
down  the  throats  of  patient  and  long-suffering  horses  ;  and  the 
empire  of  balls  and  drenches,  though  happily  weakened  in  its 
foundations,  has  by  no  means  given  up  its  sway  over  the  un- 
educated minds  of  those  to  whom  the  care  of  our  domestic  animals 
is  chiefly  intrusted.  Specifics  for  loosening  the  bowels,  produ- 
cing silkiness  of  coat,  brightness  of  the  eye,  and  briskness  of  tem- 
per,— all  more  or  less  injurious, — are  still  much  in  use.  Happily, 
however,  the  number  is  yearly  increasing  of  those  who  are  dis- 
posed to  send  all  of  these  remedies  after  the  vanishing  firing-iron 
and  blister,  believing  that  the  same  effect  on  the  bowels,  the  skin, 
the  eye,  and  the  temperament  may  be  produced  almost  as  readily, 
and  certainly  with  less  danger,  by  a  judicious  change  in  the 
character  of  the  fcod.  A  soft,  moist,  warm  diet,  such  as  steamed 
hay  or  a  hot  bran-mash,  will,  except  in  such  obstinate  cases  as 
ought  not  to  be  allowed  under  ordinary  circumstances  to  arise, 
produce  all  the  relaxation  of  the  bowels  that  it  is  desirable  to 
effect  ;  and  in  obstinate  cases  of  constipation  a  copious  injection 
of  tepid  water,  repeated  as  often  as  may  be  necessary,  cannot  fail 
to   produce  the  desired  result,  if  any  thing  will  do  it. 

Especially  in  the  case  of  horses,  the  constant  winter  diet, 
almost  the  whole  year's  diet  indeed,  consisting,  as  it  usually  does, 
simply  of  hay  and  oats  in  their  raw  state,  is  very  liable  to  produce 
derangements  of  the  digestive  organs  ;  and  it  has  been  the  custom 
to  remedy  the  evil  by  the  use  of  violent  cathartic  medicines.  A 
particular  attention  to  the  changing  of  the  food  at  times, — the 
occasional   or   even   regular   feeding   of  carrots,  at  least  the  oc- 


380  II  ANDY- BOOK    OF    lIUrfBAXDRY. 

casional  cutting  and  moistening  of  food,  and  its  more  or  less 
perfect  steaming, — the  occasional  introduction  of  bran  mashes 
into  the  wecklv  regimen, — will  give  that  variety  that  the  per- 
manent health  of  the  animal  requires  ;  and  the  necessity  for 
administering  medicines  will  be  vcrv  largely  avoided. 

Without  bv  any  means  wishing  to  enier  the  lists  in  the  con- 
test between  allopathy  and  homeopathy,  I  cannot  refrain  from 
saying  that  my  own  experience,  which  h.as  been  but  slight,  and 
my  observation,  which  has  been  considerable,  both  lead  me  to 
believe  that,  so  far  as  it  is  necessary  to  administer  medicines 
at  all  to  domestic  animals,  the  seemingly  insignificant  doses  of  the 
homeopathic  practitioner  are  more  rapidly  effective,  and  far  less 
injurious  in  their  permanent  results,  than  are  the  old  prescriptions. 
And  if  there  is  any  real  foundation  at  all  for  the  rapid  and  general 
establishment  of  homeopathy  throughout  the  world,  it  is  only 
reasonable  that  in  the  treatment  of  domestic  animals  its  ertect 
should  be  more  certain  and  more  acti\  e  than  in  the  treatment  of 
our  own  diseases,  for  the  reason  that  the  diet  of  the  brute  world 
is  so  simple  and  inoffensive  that  there  is  little  danger,  either  of 
a  counteracting  of  the  effect  of  the  medicine,  or  at  the  creation 
of  such  a  condition  of  the  system  as  will  require  tbe  vigorous 
action  of  large  doses. 

HORSES. 

Several  works  on  veterinary  homeopathy  have  been  published, 
which  contain  sufficiently  full  and  sufficiently  simple  instruc- 
tions for  the  administering  of  the  remedies  in  those  cases  in  which 
the  character  of  the  disease  can  be  determined.  In  preparing 
for  the  press,  several  years  ago,  the  book  known  as  Herbert's 
"  Hints  to  Horsekeepers,"  I  compiled  a  chapter  on  veterinary 
homeopathy,  which  is  as  applicable  at  the  present  day  as  at  the 
time  when  it  was  written.  This  chapter  was  made  up  chiefly 
from  material  found  in  Schnefer's  "  New  Manual  of  Veterinary 
Homeopathic  Medicine,"  and  the  "Hand-Book  of  Veterinary 
Homeopathy  "  by  John  Rush.     The  instructions  of  this  chapter 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT   OF   DOMESTIC   ANIMALS.     ,'381 

were  intended  only  for  the  use  of  horsemen,  but  the  same  prin- 
ciple applies  throughout  the  whole  list  of  domestic  animals, 
and  specific  directions  for  the  medication  of  all  are  included  in 
the  principal  works  upon  the  system,  several  of  which  may  be 
obtained  through  any  bookseller.  The  following  extracts  are 
made  from  the  chapter  above  referred  to  : — * 

"  The  remedies  being  in  a  liquid  form,  the  best  means  of  ad- 
ministering them  to  the  horse  is  to  put  six  drops  on  a  small 
piece  of  bread,  or  on  a  wafer  of  flour  paste,  and  to  raise  the 
horse's  head  a  little,  '  press  down  the  tongue  to  one  side,  and 
pull  it  out  as  far  as  may  be,  and  then  place  the  wafer  as  far  back 
as  possible  ;  after  which  the  mouth  is  held  closed  with  the  hand, 
in  order  to  compel  the  animal  to  swallow  the  wafer.'  Schaefer 
says  :  In  some  cases  the  dose  has  to  be  repeated  ;  but  all  use- 
less and  improper  repetition  should  be  avoided.  If  no  change 
of  any  kind  should  take  place  after  the  first  dose,  this  is  a  sure 
sign  that  the  medicine  has  been  improperly  selected,  and  that 
a  second  dose  of  the  same  remedy  would  not  do  any  more  good 
than  the  former  has  done.  In  this  case  we  have  to  review  the 
symptoms  a  second  time,  and  to  select  a  different  remedy. 
If  the  first  dose  should  produce  a  favorable  change  in  the 
symptoms  of  the  disease,  and  this  change  should  again  be  fol- 
lowed by  an  aggravation,  it  is  proper  to  give  a  second  dose  of 
the  same  remedy.  If  the  symptoms  should  become  aggravated 
after  the  first  dose,  we  should  not  all  at  once  resort  to  a  differ- 
ent remedy ;  for  this  aggravation  might  be  what  we  have  termed 
homeopathic  aggravation,  which  would  soon  be  followed  by  a 
favorable  reaction.  In  all  very  acute  diseases  that  run  a  rapid 
course,  and,  after  one,  two,  or  four  weeks,  terminate  in  death 
or  recovery,  such  as  glanders,  pleura  pneumonia,  etc,  the  dose 
should  be  repeated  every  five,  ten,  or  fifteen  minutes. 
"  In  such  dangerous  maladies,  the  first  dose  is  often  followed 
by  a  visible  improvement,  which  soon  ceases,  however  ;  this  is 
the  time  to  repeat  the  dose,  and  a  second  dose  may  then  be  emi- 

*  Herbert's  Hints  to  Horsekeepers.       Orange  Judd  &  Co.,  New  York, 


382  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

*'  nently  useful.  In  chronic  diseases  that  run  a  long  course,  the 
*'  medicine  may  be  repeated  every  day,  or  every  two,  three,  or 
"  four  days.  In  such  cases  the  rule  is,  likewise,  not  to  interfere 
*'  with  an  incipient  improvement  by  giving  another  dose  of  the  same 
''  or  some  other  remedy. 

"  If  the  improvement  stops,  the  medicine  may  be  repeated,  and 
"  if  no  improvement  at  all  should  set  in  after  a  reasonable  lapse 
"  of  time,  another  medicine  may  be  chosen.  Among  the  class  of 
'"'■  chronic  diseases  we  number  all  nervous  and  mental  diseases, 
*'  lingering  fevers,  etc.  An  improper  remedy  does  not  produce 
''  any  very  injurious  effects  ;  for  a  homeopathic  remedy  only 
*'  acts  upon  a  disease  to  which  the  medicine  is  really  homeo- 
"  pathic  :  otherwise,  the  smallness  of  the  dose  is  such  that  the 
*'  medicine  cannot  possibly  affect  the  organism.  All  that  we  have 
"  to  do  is,  to  give  another  remedy,  and  endeavor  to  avoid  mistakes 
"  for  the  future.  Homeopathic  remedies  may  be  applied  exter- 
"  nally  in  the  case  of  burns  and  other  injuries.  We  use  princi- 
"  pally  arnica,  Symphytum,  and  urtica-ureus,  from  twenty  to 
*'  thirty  drops  in  a  half-pint  of  water,  and  this  mixture  to  be 
"  applied  to  the  part  according  to  directions. 

"  J  proper  diet  in  the  case  of  sick  domestic  animals  is  of  great 
"  importance.  All  applications,  quack  medicines,  etc.,  that  might 
*'  interfere  with  the  regular  treatment,  have  to  be  avoided.  In- 
"jections  of  water  mixed  with  a  little  salt  or  soap  are  allowable. 
*'  The  usual  feed  may  be  continued.  *  *  *  Half  an  hour, 
"  at  least,  should  elapse  between  the  feeding  and  the  taking  of 
*'  the  medicine. 

"On  the  treatment  of  the  sick  animal.  Rush  says: — 

"  Treatment  of  a  sick  animal. — As  soon  as  an  animal  is  disco v- 
*'  ered  to  be  unwell,  let  it  be  immediately  placed  in  a  house  by 
"  itself;  this  is  necessary  both  for  the  welfare  of  the  sick  animal 
"  and  for  the  safety  of  the  others.  The  house  that  the  animal  is 
*'  placed  in  ought  to  be  warm,  well  lighted  and  ventilated,  and, 
"above  all,  kept  scrupulously  clean.  Let  the  person  who  attends 
"  to  the  wants  of  the  animal  be  very  cautious  to  approach  in  a 
"  quiet   manner,  never  make  any   unnecessary  noise,  or  do   any 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT    OF   DOMESTIC    ANIMALS.     383 

"  thing  that  would  tend  to  irritate  the  animal  when  in  a  state  of 
"  health. 

"  IPlth  regard  to  diet. — In  acute  diseases  no  food  whatever 
"  ought  to  be  given  until  improvement  has  taken  place,  and  even 
"  then  only  in  a  sparing  manner  ;  the  articles  of  diet  most  suitable 
"  are  bran,  oats,  hav,  carrots,  Swede  turnips,  and  green  food, 
*'  either  grass  or  clover. 

"The  bran  may  be  given  either  dry  or  wetted,  whichever  way 
*'  the  animal  prefers  it. 

"•  Oats  may  be  given  mixed  with  the  bran,  either  raw  and 
"  crushed,  or  whole  and  boiled. 

'*  It  is  necessary  to  keep  the  animal  without  food  or  water  half 
"an  hour  before  and  after  administering  the  medicine. 

"  Repetition  of  the  dose. — In  acute  diseases  it  is  necessary  to 
"  repeat  the  dose  every  Jive ^  ten.,  fifteen.,  or  twenty  minutes. 

"In  less  acute  diseases  every  two.,  four.,  six.,  or  eight  hours. 

"  In  chronic  diseases  once  in  tzventyfour  hours  is  sufficient." 

The  following  are  the  directions  given  for  the  treatment  of  a  few 
of  the  more  simple  diseases  of  horses,  and  they  are  included  here 
rather  by  way  of  illustration  than  as  a  part  of  a  complete  system, 
which,  of  course,  it  would  be  impossible  within  such  narrow  limits 
to  give  : — 

"  GREASE. 

"  Remedies. — Thuja  occidentalis.,  Secale  cornutum.,  Arsenicum., 
^''  A'lercurtus  vivus^  and  Sulphur, 

"  Thuja  occidentalis.,  both  internally  and  externally,  if  there  are 
"  bluish  or  brownish  excrescences,  which  bleed  on  the  least  touch, 
"and  there  is  a  discharge  of  fetid  ichor. 

"  Dose. — Six  drops  three  times  a  day  ;  at  the  same  time  the 
"  parts  may  be  bathed  with  the  strong  tincture  night  and  morning. 

"  Secale  cornutum  and  Arsenicum  may  be  used  in  alternation,  it 
"  there  is  a  watery  swelling  or  dark-looking  ulcers,  with  fetid  dis- 
"  charge. 

*'  Dose. — The  same  as  directed  for  Thuja  occidentalis.,  inter- 
nally. 

25 


384  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

*■*■  Mercurius  vivus  when  there  are  numerous  small  ulcers  that 
*•*■  discharge  a  thick  matter,  and  bleed  when  touched. 

*■'■  Dose. — Six  or  eight  drops  twice  a  day. 

"  It  is  necessary  to  giye  a  dose  o(  Sulphur  once  a  week  during 
"  the  treatment,  and  keep  the  legs  clean  by  washing  them  with 
*'  warm  water. 

"  FOUNDER. 

*'  Remedies. — Aconite^  Bryonia^  Veratrum,  Arsenicum^  and  Rhus 
*'''  toxicodendron. 

'•'-  Aconite^  if  there  is  inflammation,  the  animal  stands  as  if  rooted 
''  to  one  spot,  the  breathing  is  hurried  and  interrupted,  the  breath 
*'  is  hot  and  the  pulse  accelerated. 

"  Dose. — Six  drops  every  one,  two,  or  three  hours. 

"  Bryonia.,  complete  stiffness  of  the  limbs,  with  swelling  of  the 
*' joints. 

**  Dose. — Six  drops  every  two  hours. 

"  Veratrum.,  if  it  is  brought  on  by  violent  exercise. 

"  Dose. — The  same  as  directed  tor  Bryonia. 

"  Arsenicum.,  if  it  is  caused  by  bad  or  heating  food,  or  after  a 
"  cold  drink  when  overheated. 

"  Dose. — The  same  as  directed  for  Aconite. 

"  Rhus  toxicodendron.,  if  there  is  much  pain  in  the  feet,  and  the 
animal  is  very  stiff  in  his  movements. 

"  Dose. —  Six  drops  or  eight  globules  three  times  a  day  ;  at  the 
"  same  time  the  limbs  may  be  bathed  with  a  solution  of  Rhus.^ 
"  externally,  twice  a  day.  *  *  *  * 

"inflammation  of  the   brain. 

"  Remedies. — Aconite.,  Belladonna.,  Veratram.,  and  Opium. 

"  Aconite.,  in  the  very  commencement  of  this  disease,  if  the 
"  pulse  is  accelerated,  fever,  congestion  toward  the  brain,  rapid 
"  breathing,  and  trembling  of  the  whole  body. 

"  Dose. — Six  drops  every  twenty  minutes  until  several  doses 
"  have  been  taken,  or  the  more  violent  symptoms  subdued,  after 
"  which  the  next  remedy  should  be  taken  into  consideration. 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT   OF   DOMESTIC   ANIMALS.     385 

"  Belladonna^  if  the  animal  has  a  wild,  staring,  fixed  look,  dashes 
''furiously  and  unconsciously  about,  which  is  indicative  of  violent 
"congestion  of  the  brain. 

"  Dose. —  Six  drops  put  upon  the  tongue  every  fifteen  or  thirty 
"minutes,  until  the  violence  of  the  attack  is  subdued. 

"  Veratrum^  if  the  legs  and  ears  are  icy  cold,  with  convulsive 
"  trembling  of  the  whole  body,  or  where  there  is  a  reeling,  stag- 
"  gering  motion,  and  the  animal  plunges  violently  and  falls  down 
"  head  foremost. 

"  Dose. — The  same  as  directed  for  Belladonna. 

"  Opium^  if  after  the  paroxysm  the  animal  remains  motionless, 
"  with  fixed,  staring  eyes,  the  tongue  of  a  black  or  leaden  color. 

"  Dose. — Six  drops  every  half,  one,  or  two  hours,  according  to 
"  circumstances. 

"  CATARRH,    or    COMMON    COLD. 

"  Remedies. — Aconite^  Nux  vomica^  Dulcamara^  Rhus  toxico- 
"  dendron^  Bryonia^  Arsenicum^  Mercurius  vivus^  and  Pulsatilla. 

"  Aconite  will  be  useful  in  the  beginning  of  the  disease,  if  there 
"  is  fever  and  heat  of  the  body,  restlessness,  short,  hurried  breath- 
"  ing,  violent  thirst,  urine  fiery  red,  and  the  discharge  from  the 
"  nose  impeded. 

"  Dose. — Six  drops  or  six  globules  every  three  hours  until 
"  better 

'■'■Nux  vomica.,  if  during  the  prevalence  of  northeasterly  winds, 
"  and  if  the  mouth  is  dry,  tongue  coated  white,  an  offensive  earthy 
"odor  emitted  from  the  mouth,  and  a  thin  watery  or  thick  bloody 
"  discharge  from  the  nose. 

"  Dose. — Six  drops  or  six  globules  twice  a  day. 

"  Dulcamara.,  if  the  attack  was  brought  on  from  exposure  to 
"  wet,  and  the  animal  is  dull  and  drowsy,  the  tongue  coated  with 
"a  thick  sticking  phlegm. 

"  Dose. — The  same  as  directed  for  Nux  vomica. 

"  Rhus  toxicodendron.,  if  short  dry  cough,  great  accumulation  of 
"  mucus  in  the  nose,  without  being  able  to  discharge  it,  obstructed 
"  respiration,  frequent  sneezing  and  restlessness. 


386  HANDY -BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

'*  Dose. — Four  drops  or  six  globules  three  times  a  day. 

"  Bryonia^  if  there  is  difficulty  in  breathing,  dry  spasmodic 
''  cough,  swelling  of  the  nose,  profuse  coryza,  or  crusts  of  hardened 
*'  mucus  in  the  nose. 

"•  Dose. — The  same  as  directed  for  Rhus  toxicodendron. 

"  Arsenicum^  if  the  discharge  from  the  nose  continues  too  long, 
*'  is  acrid  and  corroding  to  the  nostrils,  dry  cough,  sneezing,  with 
"discharge  of  watery  mucus  from  the  nose. 

"  Dose. — Six  drops  twice  a  day. 

"  Mercurius  vivus^  in  the  first  stage  of  the  disease,  if  there  is 
"  swelling  of  the  nose,  profuse  cor\  za  with  much  sneezing. 

"  Dose. — Six  drops  or  six  globules  three  times  a  day. 

*'  Pulsatilla^  if  the  cough  is  loose,  discharge  of  greenish  fetid 
*'  matter  from  the  nose. 

"  Dose. — The  same  as  directed  for  Alercurius  vivus. 

" COUGH 

"  Remedies, — Dulcamara^  Nux  vomica^  Squilla^  Bryonia^  Amo~ 
"  nium  niuriaticuni^  Drosera^  Pulsatilla^  and  Lxcopcdiutn. 

'^  Dulcamara^  if  it  follows  cold,  especially  if  the  cold  comes  on 
*'  from  wet,  and  there  is  a  discharge  from  the  nose. 

"  Dose. — Four  or  six  drops  three  or  four  times  a  day  until 
"  better. 

"  K^ux  vomica^  if  the  cough  is  dry,  and  the  cough  comes  on 
"  when  first  leaving  the  stable. 

"  Dose. — The  same  as  directed  for  Dulcamara. 

"  Squilla^  if  the  animal  makes  a  groaning  noise  before  coughing, 
*'  and  the  whole  body  shakes  from  coughing. 

"  Dose. — Four  drops  or  six  globules  two  or  three  times  a  day. 

"  Bryonia^  if  the  cough  is  of  several  weeks'  standing,  and  worse 
"  from  motion. 

*'  Dose. — Six  drops  night  and  morning. 

*'  Ammonium  muriaticum^  if  the  horse  appears  to  be  choked  or 
"about  to  vomit,  loss  of  flesh,  the  skin  sticks  to  the  ribs. 

"  Dose. — Four  drops  every  three  hours  until  improvement  is 
*'  manifest. 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT   OF   DOMESTIC   ANIMALS.     387 

"  Drosera^  if  the  cough  is  of  long  standing,  worse  at  night  v\  hen 
"  the  animal  lies  down. 

"Dose. — Six  drops  night  and  morning. 

"  Pulsatilla^  if  the  animal  is  timid  and  easily  frightened,  or  if 
"  with  the  cough  there  is  a  bad  smelling  discharge  from  the 
"  nostrils. 

"  Dose. — Four  drops  or  six  globules  every  three  hours. 

*'  Lycopodiutn^  if  the  cough  is  excited  or  worse  after  drinking, 
"and  comes  on  in  fits,  coughing  a  great  many  times  in  rapid 
"  succession. 

*'  Dose. — Six  drops  three  times  a  day. 

"  Attention  ought  to  be  paid  to  diet  in  this  disease  ;  no  inferior 
"  food  should  be  given,  such  as  the  animal  must  eat  a  large 
"quantity  of  to  keep  itself  alive  ;  but  whatever  is  given  should 
"  be  good,  and  that  moistened  with  cold  water  ;  carrots  are  very 
"  good,  either  raw  or  boiled.  ***** 

"  colic,  or  gripes. 

"  Remedies. — Aconite^  Arsenicum^  Nux  vomica^  Opium^  Cham- 
"  omilla^  Colchlcum^  Cantharis^  Hyoscyamus^  and  Colocytith. 

"  Aconite^  in  the  commencement,  if  there  is  dryness  of  the  mouth, 
"the  ears  are  either  hot  or  cold,  breath  hot,  pulse  accelerated. 

"  Dose. — Four  drops  or  six  globules  every  fifteen  or  thirty 
"  minutes,  according  to  the  urgency  of  the  case  ;  if  no  relief  is  ob- 
"tained  after  the   third  dose,  proceed  then  with  the  next   remedy. 

"  Arsenicum^  if  the  disease  depends  on  indigestion,  food  of  bad 
"  quality,  drinking  cold  water  when  heated,  or  if  it  is  caused  by 
"  a  constipated  state  of  the  bowels,  in  which  case  it  is  considered 
*'  to  be  specific. 

"  Dose. — Six  drops  every  half,  one,  or  two  hours. 

"  I  have  succeeded  in  curing  a  great  number  of  cases  with  these 
"  two  medicines  ;  I  generally,  after  giving  two  or  three  doses  of 
"  Aconite^  g'^'^  Arsenicum  and  Aconite  alternately. 

"  Nux  vomica  is  useful  for  colic  from  constipation,  when  the 
"  animal  walks  slowly  round,  and  then  lies  or  falls  down  suddenly, 
"  bloated  appearance  of  one  or  both  flanks. 


388  IT.\NDY-BOOK     OF    HUSBANDRY. 

*■*■  Dose. — The  same  as  directed  for  Arsenicum. 

"  Opium^  if  Nux  vomica  fails  to  remove  the  constipation,  or  if 
*^'  the  excrements  are  very  dry,  hard,  and  dark  colored,  nearly 
*'  black,  and  the  animal  lies  stretched  out  as  if  dead. 

*'DosE. — Four 'drops  or  six  globules  every  one,  two,  or  three 
"  hours,  according  to  the  urgency  of  the  case. 

"  Chamomilla^  if  the  bowels  are  relaxed,  the  animal  is  very  rest- 
'^  less,  frequently  lying  down  and  getting  up  ;  an  attack  of  pain 
*'  soon  followed  by  an  evacuation,  swelling  of  the  abdomen,  ex- 
''  tremities  cold,  especially  the  ears. 

*'  Dose. — Six  drops  every  one  or  two  hours,  according  to  the 
"  severity  of  the  case,  until  better. 

"  Colch'tcum^  if  the  disease  is  caused  bv  green  food,  and  there  is 
"  flatulent  distention  of  the  abdomen,  protrusion  of  the  rectum,  the 
"  animal  strikes  at  his  belly  with  his  hinder  feet. 

"  Dose. — The  same  as  directed  for  Chamomilla. 

*'  Cantbaris^  if  there  is  a  troublesome  retention  of  urine,  and  the 
"animal  often  places  himself  in  position  to  piss  urine,  but  only 
"succeeds  in  passing  a  few  drops  ;  if  this  remedy  does  not  relieve, 
"  give  H;oscya?nus. 

*'  Dose. — The  same  as  directed  for  Chamomilla. 

%  If.  %  ifi  -if.  %  -if. 

"  INFLAMMATION    OF    THE    BOWELS. 

"  Remedies. — Aconite.,  Arsenicum.,  Rhus  toxicodendron.,  Colocyn- 
"^  this.,  Nux  vomica.,  Cuntharls.,  and  Arnica. 

'-'■  Aconite  is  the  chief  remedy  to  be  depended  upon  in  this  dis- 
"ease,  and  should  be  frequently  administered  till  a  calm  is  estab- 
"  ll-^hed,  which  generally  takes  place  in  about  an  hour. 

"  Dose. — Six  drops,  or  eight  globules  every  ten  or  fifteen 
*'  minutes,  until  relieved. 

"  Arsenicum.,  if  after  the  use  of  Aconite  some  svmptoms  still 
"  remain,  especially  if  the  disease  has  been  produced  by  green 
*^  food,  or  by  drinking  cold  water  when  heated. 

"  Dose.  —  Six  drops  everv  half,  one,  or  two  hours,  or  at  longer 
"  intervals  if  the  disease  is  not  very  violent. 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT   OF   DOMESTIC    ANIMALS.     389 

"  Rhus  toxicodendron^  if  the  extremities  are  alternately  hot  and 
"  cold,  with  sweating  of  the  belly,  and  a  frequent  discharge  of 
"  urine. 

"  Dose. — The  same  as  directed  for  Arsenicum. 

"  Colocynthis^  if  Arsenicum  does  not  remove  all  the  symptoms, 
"especially  if  it  is  accompanied  with  colic,  and  there  are  bloody 
"  evacuations. 

"  Dose. — Six  drops,  or  eight  globules  every  half  or  one  hour. 

'■'- Nux  vomica.^  or  Opium^  if  after  the  disease  is  cured  there 
"remains  a  constipated  state  of  the  bowels. 

"  Dose. — Six  drops  night  and  morning. 

"  Cantharis^  or  Hyoscyamus^  if  there  is  retention  of  urine. 

"  Arnica  will  be  useful  in  very  obstinate  cases  ;  if  the  discharges 
"  are  very  fetid,  frequently  small  stools  consisting  only  of  slime. 

"  Dose. — Six  drops  every  one  or  two  hours  until  better." 

Similar  treatment  is  equally  applicable  in  the  case  of  sick  cows, 
sheep,  and  swine. 

In  the  treatment  of  the  diseases  of  domestic  animals  by  what  is 
known  as  the  allopathic  system,  or  by  the  old  svstem  of  farriery, 
and,  indeed,  in  all  cases,  if  theailment  is  serious,  it  is  best,  whenever 
possible,  to  obtain  the  services  of  a  really  competent  veterinary 
surgeon.  Unfortunately,  there  are  few  such  in  the  countrv,  and  the 
local  horse  and  cattle  doctors  to  be  found  in  almost  every  farming 
neighborhood  are  a  sorry  substitute  for  them.  Oftentimes,  it  is 
true,  long  experience  and  good  natural  judgment  has  enabled  them 
to  understand  pretty  well  the  common  complaints  to  which  stock 
is  subject,  and  they  are  frequently  quite  successful  in  their  treat- 
ment ;  but  in  the  majority  of  cases  it  is  doubtful  whether  they  do 
not  really  do  more  harm  than  good. 

In  Herbert's  "  Hints  to  Horsekeepers,"  there  is  a  chapter 
concerning  "  Simple  Remedies  for  Simple  Ailments,"  which,  so 
far  as  it  has  been  possible  to  condense,  within  the  limits  of  a  few 
pages,  practical  directions  in  this  matter,  is  probably  the  best  com- 
pendium now  within  reach.      The  writer  says, — 

"  It  is  not  too  much  to  say.^  that  more  than  onehalf  the  ail  ments 


390  HANDY-BOOK    OF    nUSBANDRY. 

"  of  horses  arise,  in  the  first  instance,  from  bad  management, — or, 
"  to  speak  more  correctly,  from  absence  of  all  management,  from 
"  an  improper  svstem  of  feeding,  from  ill-constructed,  unventilated, 
"  filthy  stabling,  from  injudicious  driving,  and  neglect  of  cleaning. 
"  When  disease  has  arisen,  it  is  immediately  aggravated,  and,  per- 
"  haps,  rendered  ultimately  fatal,  either  by  want  of  medical  aid,  or, 
"  what  is  far  more  frequent  as  well  as  far  more  prejudicial,  igno- 
"  rant,  improper,  and  often  violent  treatment,  either  on  a  wrong 
"  diagnosis  of  the  affection,  or  on  a  still  more  wrong  svstem  of 
"relieving  it.  Over-medicining  and  vulgarly  quacking  slightly 
"ailing  horses  is  the  bane  of  half  the  private  stables  in  cities,  and 
"  of  nearly  all  the  farm  stables  in  the  country  ;  and  one  or  the 
"  other,  or  both  combined,  cause  the  ruin  of  half  the  horses  which 
"  *■  go  to  the  bad  '  every  year. 

"  There  is  no  quack  on  earth  equal  to  an  ignorant,  opinionated 
"  groom  •,  and  every  one,  nowadays,  holds  himself  a  groom,  who  is 
"  trusted  with  the  care  of  a  horse,  even  if  he  do  not  know  how  to 
"clean  him  properlv,or  to  feed  him  so  as  not  to  interfere  with  his 
"working  hours.  Every  one  of  these  wretched  fellows,  who  has 
"no  more  idea  of  a  horse's  structure  or  of  his  constitution  than  he 
'^  has  of  the  model  of  a  ship  or  the  economy  of  an  empire,  is  sure 
"  to  have  a  thousand  infallible  remedies  for  everv  possible  disease, 
"the  names  of  which  he  does  not  know,  nor  their  causes,  origin, 
"or  operation;  and  which,  if  he  did  know  their  names,  he  is 
"entirely  incapable  of  distinguishing  one  from  the  other.  These 
"  remedies  he  applies  at  haphazard,  wholly  in  the  dark  as  to  their 
"  efi^ect  on  the  system  in  general,  or  on  the  particular  disease,  and, 
"  of  course,  nine  times  out  of  ten  he  applies  them  wrongfully,  and 
"  aggravates  fiftyfold  the  injury  he  affects  to  be  able  to  relieve. 

"These  are  the  fellows  who  are  constantly  administering  purga- 
*'tive  balls,  diuretic  balls,  cordial  balls  on  their  own  hook,  without 
"  advice,  orders,  or  possible  reason — and  such  balls,  tool  some  of 
"them  scarcely  less  fatal  than  a  cannon-ball — who  are  continually 
"drugging  their  horses  with  niter  in  their  food,  under  an  idea  that 
"  it  is  cooling  to  the  system,  and  that  it  makes  the  coat  sleek  and 
"  silky,  never  suspecting  that  it  is  a  violent  diuretic  ;  that  its  cpe- 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT   OF   DOMESTIC   ANIMALS.   391 

"  ration  on  the  kidneys  is  irritating  and  exhausting  in  the  extreme, 
"and  that  the  only  way  in  which  it  cools  the  animal's  system  is 
"that  it  reduces  his  strength,  and  acts  as  a  serious  drain  on  his 
"  constitution.  These,  lastly,  are  the  fellows  who  are  constantly 
"  applying  hot  oils^  fiery  irritants  and  stimulants  to  wounds,  strains, 
"  bruises,  or  contusions,  which,  in  themselves,  produce  violent 
"  inflammation  ;  and  to  which,  requiring,  as  they  do,  the  exhibition 
"  of  mild  and  soothing  remedies,  cold  lotions,  or  warm  fomenta- 
*'  tions,  the  application  of  these  stimulating  volatile  essences  is 
"  much  what  it  would  be  to  administer  brandy  and  cayenne  to  a 
*'  man  with  a  brain  fever. 

"  It  should,  therefore,  be  a  positive  rule  in  every  stable,  whether 
"  for  pleasure  or  farm  purposes,  that  not  a  dram  of  medicine  is 
"  ever  to  be  administered  without  the  express  orders  of  the 
"  master.  Even  if  a  horsekeeper  be  so  fortunate  as  to  possess  a 
"  really  intelligent,  superior  servant,  who  has  served  his  apprentice- 
••'  ship  in  a  good  stable,  and  has  learned  a  good  deal  about  horses, 
"  he  should  still  insist  on  being  invariably  consulted  before  medi- 
"  cine  is  administered." 

In  all  serious  cases,  of  course,  the  best  medical  aid  that  it  is 
possible  to  procure  should  be  at  once  called  in  ;  but  in  all  cases 
the  owner  should,  as  far  as  possible,  exercise  his  own  judgment  as 
to  the  extent  to  which  the  directions  given  are  to  be  followed, 
unless  the  practitioner  is  a  regularly  educated  veterinary  surgeon. 
Concerning  purgatives,  Herbert  writes  as  follows  : — 

"  We  are  very  decided  opponents  of  purgatives  in  general,  and 
''have  been  gratified  by  observing  that  the  recent  cause  of  veteri- 
"  nary  practice,  both  in  France  and  England,  is  tending  to  the 
*'  entire  abandonment  of  the  old  system  ;  according  to  which, 
"  every  horse,  whether  any  thing  ailed  him  or  not,  was  put  through 
"two  annual  courses  of  purgation,  each  of  three  doses,  in  the 
"  spring  and  fall,  besides  bavins;  to  bolt  a  diuretic  ball  fortnightly 
"  or  oftener,  according  to  the  whim  of  the  groom,  when  his  kidneys 
"  no  more  required  stimulation  than  his  hocks  did  blisterinii;. 

"  A  horse  of  ordinary  size  contains,  on  an  average,  from  twenty 
"  to  twenty-four  quarts  of  blood,  and  the  loss  to  him  of  four  quarts 


392  II  ANDY-BOOK    OF    II  USB  AX  DRY. 

"  is  not  so  much  as  a  pound  or  pint  to  a  human  being.  In  cases 
*'  of  acute  inflammation,  a  horse  may  be  bled  eight  or  ten  quarts 
*'at  a  time,  or  until  he  lies  down,  with  advantage;  and  if  the 
'*  symptoms  do  not  abate,  may  be  bled  again  at  intervals  of  an 
*'  hour  or  two,  to  an  extent  which  a  person,  i^norant  how  rapidly 
*' blood  is  made,  would  suppose  must  drain  the  animal  of  his  life. 
*'  Purgatives,  in  our  opinion,  on  the  other  hand,  should  be  very 
"  cautiously  administered  ;  never  when  there  is  any  inflammation 
*'  of  the  lungs  or  bowels  ;  very  rarely  when  there  is  any  ittternal 
"  inflammation  ;  and  when  gi\'en,  should  never,  or  hardly  ever,  in 
"  our  judgment,  exceed  five  drams  of  new  Barbadoes  aloes.  Injec- 
*'  tions,  diet,  and  mashes  are  vastly  superior,  for  general  practice, 
*'  to  acute  purgatives,  horses  being  extremely  liable  to  super-pur- 
"  gation,  and  many  valuable  animals  being  lost  in  consequence  of  it 
*' yearly. 

"  The  first  branch  of  the  subject  on  which  we  propose  to  treat, 
*'  is  the  early  application  of  remedies  to  horses  suddenly  seized 
"with  violent  and  acute  diseases,  anticipatory  to  the  calling  in  of 
"  regular  medical  assistance.  It  is  highly  necessary  that  this  should 
"  be  done  as  soon  as  the  horse  is  known  to  be  seized,  and  the 
"  nature  of  his  seizure  is  fully  ascertained,  since,  in  several  of  the 
"•  diseases  to  which  the  horse  is  most  liable,  the  increase  of  the 
"  malady  is  so  rapid  that,  if  early  steps  be  not  taken  to  relieve  the 
"  sufferer,  the  evil  becomes  so  firmly  seated  that  the  remedy,  if 
"  long  delayed,  comes  too  late,  and  an  animal  is  lost,  which,  by 
*■'■  timely  assistance,  might  have  easily  been  preserved.  These 
"  ailments,  especially,  are  of  common  occurrence  with  the  horse, 
"  of  highly  dangerous  character,  and  so  rapid  in  their  development 
"  and  increase,  that  if  steps  be  not  taken  for  their  relief  almost 
"  immediately  after  their  commencement,  all  treatment  will  be 
"  useless  ; — these  are  spasmodic  colic,  inflammation  of  the  bowels, 
"and  inflammation  of  the  lungs." 

Mr.  Youatt,  in  his  excellent  work  on  the  horse,  says  of  colic, — 

"  There  is  often   not   the  slightest  warning.      The   horse  begins 

"  to  shift  his  posture,  look  round  at  his  flanks,  paw  \  iolently,  strike 

"  his  belly  with   his  feet,  lie  down,  roll,  and  that  frequently  on  his 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT   OF   DOMESTIC   ANIMALS.    393 

"  back.  In  a  few  minutes  the  pain  seems  to  cease,  the  horse 
"  shakes  himself  and  begins  to  feed  ;  but  on  a  sudden  the  spasm 
"  returns  more  violently,  every  indication  of  pain  is  increased,  he 
"  heaves  at  the  flanks,  breaks  out  in  a  profuse  perspiration,  and 
"  throws  himself  more  violently  about.  In  the  space  of  an  hour 
"or  two  either  the  spasms  begin  to  relax  and  the  remissions  are 
"  longer  in  duration,  or  the  torture  is  augmented  at  every  paroxysm, 
"  the  intervals  of  ease  are  fewer  and  less  marked,  and  inflam-" 
"  mation  and  death  supervene." 

Youatt  also  gives  the  following  tabular  statement  of  the  symp- 
toms by  which  colic  and  inflammation  ot  the  bowels  may  be  dis- 
tinguished from  each  other: — 


"  COLIC. 

"  Sudden  in  its  attack,  and  without  any 
warning. 

"  Pulse  rarely  much  quickened  in  the  early 
period  or  the  disease,  and  during  the  in- 
tervals of  ease,  but  evidently  fuller. 

"Legs  and  ears  of  natural  temperature. 

"  Relief  obtained  from  rubbing  the  belly. 

"  Relief  obtained  from   motion. 
"Intervals  of  rest  and  ease. 
"  Strength  scarcely  affected. 


INFLAMMATION   OF  THE   BOWELS. 

Gradual  in  its  approach,  with  previous  indi- 
cations of  fever. 

Pulse  very  much  quickened,  but  small,  and 
often  scarcely  to  be  felt. 

Legs  and  ears  cold. 

Belly  exceedingly  painful   and  tender  to  the 

touch. 
Pain  evidently  increased  by  motion. 
Constant  pain. 
Great  and  evident  weakness." 


With  reference  to  colic,  inflammation  of  the  bowels,  and  in- 
flammation of  the  lungs,  Herbert  says, — 

"  Colic  is  usually  produced  by  sudden  cold,  often  the  result 
"  of  drinking  cold  water  when  heated  ;  sometimes  by  exposure  to 
"  cold  wind  in  a  draft,  when  heated  ;  sometimes  by  overfeeding 
"  on  green  meat  or  new  corn.  The  causes  ot  inflammation  of 
"the  bowels  are  somewhat  similar,  though  not  identical.  Horses 
"  used  to  high  feeding  and  warm  stabling,  which,  after  sharp  exer- 
"  cise  and  being  for  some  hours  without  food,  are  exposed  to  cold 
"  wind,  or  are  allowed  to  drink  freely  of  cold  water,  or  are 
"  drenched  with  rain,  or  have  their  legs  and  belly  washed  with  cold 
"  water,  are  almost  sure  to  be  attacked  with  inflammation  of  the 


394  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"bowels.  An  overfed  or  ovcrfat  horse,  which  is  subjected  to 
"  severe  and  long-continued  exertion,  if  his  lungs  be  weak,  will 
*' be  attacked,  probablv  the  same  night,  bv  inflammation  of  the 
"lungs  ;  if  the  kings  be  sound,  the  attack  will  be  on  his  bowels 
*'  the  following  day. 

"  The  diagnosis  being  made,  and  the  disease  being  fully  estab- 
*' lished  to  be  spasmodic  colic,  and  not  inflammation,  the  treat- 
"  ment  should  be  as  follows  :  Give  at  once,  in  a  drench,  by  a 
^'  horn  or  bottle,  three  ounces  of  spirits  of  turpentine,  and  an 
"  ounce  of  laudanum  in  a  pint  of  warm  ale,  the  effect  of  which 
"  will  often  be  instantaneous.  If  these  ingredients  cannot  be 
"quickly  obtained,  a  drench  of  hot  ale  with  ginger,  a  wine-glass- 
"  ful  of  gin,  and  a  teaspoonful  of  black  pepper,  with,  if  possible, 
"the  laudanum  added,  will  succeed  as  a  substitute.  If  the  par- 
*' oxysm  returns,  or  if  relief  of  a  decided  kind  do  not  take  place 
"  within  half  an  hour,  from  four  to  six  quarts  of  bhjod  mav  he 
"taken,  with  advantage,  in  order  to  pre\'cnt  inflammation.  The 
"  dose  ot  turpentine  should  be  repeated,  and  chsters  of  warm 
*'  water,  with  an  ounce  of  finch-powdcrcd  Barbadocs  aloes  dis- 
"  solved  in  them,  should  be  injected,  at  intervals,  until  the  counter- 
"  irritation  puts  a  stop  to  the  spasms.  For  the  injections,  a  com- 
"  mon  wooden  pipe  with  an  ox-bladder  will  answer,  although  the 
"  patent  syringe  is  far  better.  The  pipe  should  be  greased  and 
"  introduced  gently  and  tenderly,  great  care  being  had  not  to  alarm 
"  or  startle  the  animal.  The  operation  and  effect  of  the  medicines 
*'  will  be  promoted  by  gentle  friction  of  the  belly  with  a  brush 
"  or  hot  flannel  cloth,  and  by  walking  the  horse  or  trotting  him 
"  very  gently  about  ;  but  all  violence,  or  violent  motions,  must 
'•'■  be  avoided,  as  tending  to  produce  inflammation.  These  remc- 
"  dies,  which  can  be  procured  with  ease  in  any  villa^ic,  almost  in 
"  any  house,  will  almost  to  a  certainty  remove  the  disease. 
"When  relief  is  obtained,  the  horse's  clothes  should  be  chani:;cd, 
"  which  will  be  found  to  be  saturated  with  sweat  ;  he  should  be 
"  slightly  clcincd  ;  warmly  and  dryly  littered  down,  if  possible, 
"  in  a  1(  OS?  box,  and  should  be  fed  for  two  or  three  days  on  warm 
"  bran    n. ashes,  and   suffered   to  drink   warm    water   only.      It  is 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT   OF   DOMESTIC   ANIMALS.     395 

"  evident  that  the  above  treatment,  which  is  stimulating,  would  be 
"probably  fatal,  as  it  would  aggravate  all  the  worst  features,  in  a 
"  case  of  inflammation,  which  must  be  treated,  as  near  as  possi- 
*'  ble,  on  the  opposite  plan — that  is,  antiphlogistically. 

"  Inflammation  of  the  Bowels. — The  first  step,  in  decided 
"  cases  where  the  extremities  are  cold  and  the  pulse  very  quick  and 
"  very  feeble — observe  here  that  fifty-five  is  very  quick,  indicating 
*'  considerable  fever,  and  seventy-five  perilously  quick — is  to  take 
"  eight  or  ten  quarts  of  blood  as  soon  as  the  malady  appears,  for 
"  there  is  no  other  malady  that  so  quickly  runs  its  course.  If  this 
"  do  not  relieve  the  pain  and  render  the  pulse  more  moderate,  and 
"fuller,  and  rounder,  four  or  five  quarts  more  may  be  taken  with- 
"out  any  regard  to  the  weakness  of  the  animal.  That  weakness 
"  is  a  part  of  the  disease,  and  when  the  inflammation  is  subdued  by 
"  the  loss  of  blood,  the  weakness  will  disappear.  We  have  said 
"that  most  of  the  acute  diseases  of  the  horse  and  the  man  are 
"closely  similar,  and  their  treatment  analogous.  In  acute  inflam- 
*' mation  of  the  bowels  there  is  an  exception.  The  human  prac- 
"  titioner  properly  uses  strong  purgatives  in  cases  of  acute  inflam- 
"  mation  of  the  bowels.  The  irritability  of  the  horse's  bowels  will 
*'  not  allow  their  exhibition.  The  most  that  can  be  done  is  to  throw 
"up  copious  injections — they  can  hardly  be  too  copious — of  thin* 
"  gruel,  in  which  half  a  pound  of  Epsom  salts,  or  half  an  ounce  of 
"  Barbadoes  aloes,  has  been  dissolved.  The  horse  should  be  en- 
"  couraged  to  drink  freely  of  warm,  thin  gruel,  and  he  should  have 
*'  a  draught  every  six  hours  of  warm  water,  with  from  one  to  two 
"  drams — never  more — of  aloes  dissolved  in  it.  Above  all,  the 
"  whole  belly  should  be  blistered  as  quickly  as  possible  after  the 
"  nature  of  the  disease  is  fully  ascertained,  with  tincture  of  can- 
"  tharides  well  rubbed  in.  The  legs  should  be  well  bandaged,  to 
"restore  the  circulation  ;  and  the  horse  should  be  warmly  clothed, 
"  but  the  stable  kept  cool  ;  no  hay  or  oats  must  be  allowed  during 
*•'•  the  attack,  but  merely  bran-mashes  and  green  meat  ;  of  the  latter, 
"  especially,  as  much  as  he  will  eat.  As  the  horse  recovers,  a  little 
"  oats  may  be  given,  a  handful  or  two  at  a  time,  twice  or  thrice  a 
"  day,  but  not  more  ;  and  they  should  be  increased  sparingly  and 


396  HANDT-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

*' gradually.  Clysters  of  gruel  should  be  continued  for  two  or  three 
"days,  and  hand-rubbing  and  bandaging,  to  restore  the  circulation. 
"  There  is  another  kind  of  inflannnaiion  ot  the  bowels,  which 
*'  attacks  the  inner  or  mucous  membrane,  and  is  produced  by  super- 
''  purgation,  and  the  exhibition  of  improper  medicine  in  improper 
"quantities.  Its  characteristics  are  incessant  purging,  laborious 
"breathing,  pulse  quick  and  small,  but  less  so  than  in  the  other 
"  form  of  disease  ;  and  above  all,  the  mouth  is  hot,  and  the  legs 
'■'■  and  ears  warm.  In  this  disease  no  food  must  be  allowed,  least  of 
"all  laxative  food,  such  as  mashes  or  green  meat  ;  but  diaughts 
"and  clysters  of  gruel,  thin  starch  and  arrow-root  may  be  given 
"  frequently.  If  the  pain  and  purging  do  not  pass  away  within 
"twelve  hours,  astringents  must  be  given.  The  best  form  is 
"  powdered  chalk,  i  ounce  ;  catechu,  \  of  an  ounce  ;  opium,  2 
"  scruples,  in  gruel,  repeated  every  six  hours  till  the  purging  be- 
"gins  to  subside,  when  the  doses  should  be  gradually  decreased 
"and  discontinued.  Bleeding  is  not  generally  necessary,  unless 
"  the  inflammation  and  fever  are  excessive.  The  horse  should 
"  be  kept  warm,  and  his  legs  rubbed  and  bandaged  as  directed 
"  in  the  former  type  of  the  disease. 

"  Inflammation  of  the  Lungs. — This  disease,  which,  in  a 
**■  state  of  nature,  is  almost  unknown  to  the  horse,  is  one  to  which 
"  in  his  domesticated  state  he  is  most  liable,  and  which  is  most 
^'fatal  to  him.  It  requires  immediate  and  most  active  treatment. 
*'  It  is  sometimes  sudden  in  its  attack,  but  is  generally  preceded 
"  bv  fever.  The  pulse  is  not  always  much  quickened  in  the  first 
"  instance,  but  is  indistinct  and  depressed.  The  extremities  are 
*'  painfully  cold  ;  the  lining  membrane  of  the  nostrils  becomes 
"  intensely  red  ;  the  breathing  is  quick,  hurried,  and  seems  to  be 
"  interrupted  by  pain,  or  mechanical  obstruction.  The  horse 
"  stands  stiffly,  with  his  legs  far  apart,  so  as  to  distend  his  chest 
"  to  the  utmost,  and  is  singularly  unwilling  to  move,  or  to  lie 
"  down,  persisting  in  standing  up,  day  after  day,  and  night  after 
"  night  ;  and  if  at  last  compelled  bv  fatigue  to  lie  down,  rises  again 
"  after  a  moment's  repose.  The  pulse  soon  becomes  irregular, 
**  indistinct,  and  at  last  almost  imperceptible.     The  legs  and  cars 


MEDICAL  TREATMENT   OF   DOMESTIC   ANIMALS.    397 

"■  assume  a  clav-like,  clammy  coldness, — the  coldness  of  death. 
*'  The  lining  of  the  nostril  turns  purple  ;  the  teeth  are  violently 
"  ground  ;  the  horse  persists  in  standing  until  he  can  stand  no 
*'  longer,  when  he  staggers,  drops,  and  soon  dies. 

"  For  this  disease  the  only  remedy  that  can  be  depended  upon 
"  is  the  lancet.  The  horse  must  be  bled,  not  according  to  quan- 
"  tity,  not  only  till  the  pulse  begins  to  rise,  but  until  it  begins  to 
*'  flutter  or  stop,  and  the  animal  begins  to  faint.  The  operator 
"  should  watch  this  effect,  with  his  linger  on  the  pulse,  while  the 
"  bleeding  is  in  process.  At  the  end  of  six  hours,  if  the  horse 
*'  still  persist  in  standing  and  the  laborious  breathing  still  continue, 
*■'■  the  bleeding  should  be  repeated  to  the  same  extent.  This  will 
''  generally  succeed  in  conquering  the  strength  of  the  disease. 
"  If  a  third  bleeding  be  necessary,  as  is  sometimes  the  case,  it 
"  must  not  be  carried  beyond  four  or  fiye  quarts,  lest  not  only 
''  the  disease,  but  the  recuperatiye  power  be  subdued.  After 
"  this,  if  the  symptoms  return,  successiye  bleedings  to  the  extent 
"  of  two  or  three  quarts  should  be  used,  to  preyent  the  re-estab- 
"  lishment  of  the  disease.  The  instrument  for  bleeding  should 
"  be  a  broad-shouldered  thumb-lancet,  and  the  stream  of  blood 
"  should  be  full  and  strong.  Some  of  the  blood  from  each  bleed- 
"  ing  should  be  set  aside  in  a  glass  tumbler,  and  suffered  to  grow 
"  cold,  in  order  to  note  the  thickness  of  the  buff-colored,  adhesiye 
"  coat  which  will  appear  on  the  top  of  it,  and  which  indicates  the 
"  degree  of  inflammation  at  the  time  the  blood  was  drawn.  We 
"  have  seen  it  occupy  aboye  one-half  the  depth  of  the  tumbler. 
"  As  the  condition  of  the  blood  improyes,  and  the  symptoms  of 
"  the  animal  decrease,  the  bleeding  may  be  gradually  discon- 
"  tinued. 

"  The  whole  of  the  horse's  chest  and  sides,  up  as  far  as  to  the 
''  elbows,  should  now  be  thoroughly  blistered,  the  hair  haying 
"  been  previously  closely  shaved,  with  an  ointment  of  one  part  of 
"  Spanish  flies,  four  of  lard,  and  one  of  rosin,  well  rubbed  in.  In 
"  making  the  ointment,  the  rosin  and  lard  should  be  melted 
*'  together,  and  the  flies  then  added. 

"  A    horse   with    inflammation    of  the    lung-s    must    never   be 


398  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"  actively  purged  ;  the  bowels  and  lungs  act  so  stronglv  in  svm- 
"  pathy,  that  inflammation  of  the  former  would  surelv  supervene, 
"  and  prove  fatal.  The  horse  must  be  back-raked,  and  clvstered 
"  with  warm  gruel,  containing  eight  ounces  of  Epsom  salts. 
"  Castor  oil  must  never  be  given;  it  is  a  most  dangerous  medi- 
"  cine  to  the  horse.  Doses  of  niter,  digitalis,  and  tartar  emetic, 
"  in  the  proportion  of  three  ounces  of  the  first,  one  of  the  second, 
"  and  one  and  a  half  of  the  third,  may  be  given,  morning  and 
"  evening,  until  the  animal  begins  to  amend,  when  the  dose  may 
"  be  reduced  to  one-half.  The  horse  must  be  warmlv  clothed, 
*'  but  kept  in  a  cool  box.  As  he  recovers,  his  skin  should  be 
"  gently  rubbed  with  a  brush,  if  it  do  not  irritate  him  ;  but  his 
*'  legs  must  be  constantly  and  thoroughly  hand-rubbed  and  ban- 
"  daged.  He  should  not  be  coaxed  to  eat,  but  mav  have  a  little 
*'  hay  to  amuse  him,  cold  mashes  and  green  meat,  but  on  no 
''  account  a  particle  of  oats.  Eight-and-forty  hours  generally 
"  decides  the  question  of  death  or  life.  But  in  case  of  recovery, 
"  it  is  necessary  long  to  watch  for  a  relapse,  which  is  of  frequent, 
*'  one  might  say  of  general,  occurrence.  It  is  to  be  met  at  once 
"  by  the  same  energetic  treatment.  And  now,  one  word  to  the 
"  owner  of  a  horse  which  has  had  one  bad  attack  of  inflammation, 
"  either  of  the  lungs  or  of  the  bowels.  Get  rid  of  him  as  soon 
**  as  possible  !  It  is  ten  to  one  that  he  will  have  another,  and 
"  another,  and,  as  in  the  former  instance,  end  by  becoming 
"  broken-winded, — in  the  latter  by  being  useless,  from  a  nearly 
"chronic  state  of  the  disease." 

"Common  Cough  is  generally  subdued  without  much  difli- 
*'  culty,  though  it  often  becomes  of  most  serious  consequence 
"  if  neglected.  It  is  accompanied  by  a  heightened  pulse;  a  slight 
"  discharge  from  the  nose  and  eves,  a  rough  coat,  and  a  dimin- 
"  ished  appetite,  being  its  symptoms.  The  horse  should  be  kept 
"  warm,  fed  on  mashes,  and  should  have  a  dose  or  two  of  medi- 
"  cine.     If  the  couo;h  be  very  obstinate,  bleeding  mav  be  necessary." 

The  following  further  directions  bv  the  same  author  contain 
valuable  information  for  all  owners  of  horses  : — 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT   OF   DOMESTIC   ANIMALS.    339 

"  In  giving  medicine,  if  balls  be  used,  they  should  never 
"  weigh  above  an  ounce  and  a  half,  or  be  above  an  inch  in 
"  diameter,  and  three  in  length.  The  horse  should  be  lashed  in 
'*  the  stall,  the  tongue  should  be  dravvn  gently  out  with  the  left 
"  hand  on  the  offside  of  the  mouth,  and  fixed  there,  not  by  con- 
"  tinuing  to  pull  at  it,  but  by  pressing  the  fingers  against  the  side 
"  of  the  lower  jaw.  The  ball  is  then  taken  between  the  tips  of 
"  the  fingers  of  the  right  hand,  the  arm  being  bared  and  passed 
**  rapidly  up  the  mouth,  as  near  the  palate  as  possible,  until  it 
*'  reaches  the  root  of  the  tongue,  when  it  is  delivered  with  a 
"  slight  jerk,  the  hand  is  withdrawn,  and  the  tongue  being  re- 
''  leased,  the  ball  is  forced  down  into  the  cesophagus.  Its  passage 
**  should  be  watched  down  the  left  side  of  the  throat,  and  if  it  do 
"  not  pass  immediately,  a  slight  tap  under  the  chin  will  easily 
*'  cause  the  horse  to  swallow  it.  The  only  safe  purgative  for  a 
*'  horse  is  Barbadoes  aloes  ;  or  the  flour  of  the  Croton  bean,  for 
*'  some  peculiar  purposes,  but  its  drastic  nature  renders  it  unde- 
"  sirable  as  a  general  aperient.  When  aloes  are  used,  care  should 
"  be  taken  to  have  them  new,  as  they  speedily  lose  their  power, 
*'  and  they  should  be  freshly  mixed.  Very  mild  doses  only  should 
"  be  used  ;  four  or  five  drams  are  amply  sufficient,  if  the  horse 
"  has  been  prepared,  as  he  should  be,  by  being  fed,  for  two  days  at 
"  least,  entirely  on  mashes,  which  will  cause  a  small  dose  to  have 
"  a  beneficial  efi'ect,  equal  to  double  the  quantity  administered  to  a 
"horse  not  duly  prepared  for  it.  The  immense  doses  of  eight, 
"  nine,  ten,  and  even  twelve  drams,  which  were  formerly  in  vogue, 
"  and  which  are  still  favored  by  grooms,  hostlers,  and  carters,  are 
"  utterly  exploded  ;  and  it  is  well  known  that  eight  or  nine  good 
"  fluid  evacuations  are  all  that  can  be  desired,  and  far  safer  than 
*' twice  the  number. 

"  Four  and  a  half  drams  of  Barbadoes  aloes,  with  olive  or  lin- 
*■'■  seed  oil  and  molasses,  sufficient  to  form  a  mass  in  the  proportion 
"  of  eight  of  the  aloes  to  one  of  the  oil  and  three  of  the  molasses, 
"  is  the  best  general  ball,  though  often  four  drams  given  after  a 
*'  sufficiency  of  mashes  or  green  food,  will  accomplish  all  that  is 
"  needed  or  desirable.  Castor  oil  is  a  most  dangerous  and  uncer- 
26 


400  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

'■*■  tain   medicine.      Linseed  oil   is  not  much  better.      Olive  oil  is 

*'  safe,  but  weak.      Epsom  salt  is  inefficient,  except  in  enormous 

*'  doses,  and  is  then  dangerous.      It  is,  however,  excellent,  given 

*'  in  clysters  of  weak  gruel,  which,  by  the  way,  except  where 

"  very  searching  and  thorough  purging  is  required,  as  in  cases  of 

*'  mange  or  grease,  is  by  far  the  safest,  most  agreeable,  and  mild- 

*■''  est    way    of   purging    the    horse,   and     evacuating    his   bowels. 

*■*■  Where,  however,  his  intestines  are  overloaded  with  fat,  where 

*'  he  shows   signs   of  surfeit,  or  where  it  is  necessary  to  prepare 

*' him   to   undergo   some  great   change  of  svstem,  as  from  a  long 

*'  run  at  grass  to  a  hot  stable,  or  vice  versa^  a  mild   course  of  two 

*'  or  three  doses  of  physic,  with  a  clear  interval  of  a  week  between 

*'  the  setting  of  one  dose  and  the  giving  of  another,  is  necessary, 

*■*•  and  cannot  be  properly  dispensed  with. 

"  CosTiVENESs. — Ordinary  cases   can   generally   be   conquered 

**  without  medicine,  by  diet,  such  as  hop  or  bran  mashes,  green 

*'  meat,  and  carrots  ;  but  where  it  is  obstinate,  the  rectum  should 

"  be  cleared  of  dry  faeces  by  passing  the  naked  arm,  well  greased, 

*'  up  the  anus  ;  and  the  bowels  should  be  then  thoroughly  evacu- 

*'ated  by  clysters  of  thin  gruel,  with  half  an  ounce  of  Barbadoes 

*' aloes,  or  half  a  pound  of  Epsom  salts   dissolved   in   it.      If  the 

"  patent  syringe  be   used,  the  injection  will  reach  the  colon  and 

'*  ccjecum,  and  dispose  them  also  to  evacuate  their  contents." 
******* 

*■*■  Strangles,  or  colt-distemper,  is  a  disease  which  shows  itself 
"  in  all  young  horses,  and  from  which,  when  they  have  once 
*'  passed  through  its  ordeal,  they  have  no  more  to  fear.  It  is  pre- 
"  ceded  by  some  derangement  of  circulation,  quickening  of  the 
"  pulse,  some  fever,  cough,  and  sore  throat.  The  parts  around 
*'  the  throat  swell,  the  maxillary  glands  are  swollen  and  tender, 
"  and  sometimes  the  parotids  also.  The  animal  refuses  to  drink, 
*'  and  often  declines  his  food.  There  is  a  flow  of  saliva  from  the 
*'  mouth,  and  a  semi-purulent  discharge  from  the  nose.  The 
"jaws,  throat,  and  glands  of  the  neck  should  be  poulticed  with 
"steaming  mashes,  the  skin  stimulated  by  means  of  a  liquid  blis- 
"  ter,  and  the  head  steamed  in  order  to  promote  suppuration.     As 


MEDICAL   TREAT5IEXT   OF   DOMESTIC   ANIMALS.    401 

"  soon  as  fluctuation  can  be  perceived,  the  swelling  should  be 
"  lanced,  and  a  rowel  introduced,  to  keep  the  abscess  open  and 
*■'■  the  discharge  flowing  for  a  few  days.  The  animal  should  have 
*'  walking  exercise,  and  be  treated  with  green  food  until  the 
"^  symptoms  abate,  when  he  will  require  liberal  and  generous  food 
"  to  recruit  his  strength. 

"  Worms  are  sometimes  troublesome  to  a  horse,  but  in  a  far 
*■'■  less  degree  than  is  generally  supposed.  Botts  have  long  since 
"  been  proved  to  be  perfectly  harmless  while  they  are  within  the 
"  stomach, — all  the  stories  of  their  eating  through  its  coats  being 
*'  pure  tnyths^  although  they  are  very  often  troublesome  after  they 
"  have  passed  out  of  the  oesophagus  and  rectum,  and  begin  to 
"  adhere  to  the  orifice  of  the  anus.  Common  purgatives  will 
"  often  bring  away  vast  numbers  of  the  long,  white  worm,  teres 
*■'■  lumbricus^  which  occasionally,  when  existing  in  great  numbers, 
"  consume  too  large  a  proportion  of  the  animal's  food,  and  pro- 
"  duce  a  tight  skin,  a  tucked-up  belly,  and  a  rough  coat.  Calo- 
"  mel  should  never  be  given,  as  it  too  frequently  is,  for  the 
"  removal  of  these  worms,  which  will  readily  yield  to  balls  of  two 
"  drams  of  tartar  emetic,  one  scruple  of  ginger,  with  molasses  and 
''  linseed  oil  quantum  suff.^  given  alternate  mornings,  half  an 
"  hour  before  feeding  time.  The  smaller  worm,  ascaris^  which 
"  often  causes  serious  irritation  about  the  fundament,  is  best  re- 
"  moved  by  injecting  a  quart  of  linseed  oil,  or  an  ounce  of  aloes 
''  dissolved  in  warm  water,  which  is  a  most  effectual  remedy. 

"  Diseases  of  the  Bladder  are  many,  serious,  and  often 
"  mistreated.  They  require,  however,  so  much  skill  and  so  ac- 
"  curate  a  diagnosis,  that  none  but  a  regular  practitioner  should 
"pretend  to  treat  them.  Simple  difficulty  of  staling  can  generally 
*' be  relieved  by  cleansing  the  sheath  with  the  hand,  and  giving 
"gentle  doses  of  niter.  These  are  most  of  the  simpler  diseases 
"which  may  be  simply  and  successfully  treated  at  home,  and  with 
"  which  every  horsekeeper  ought  to  be  at  least  superficially  and 
"generally  acquainted.  We  shall  touch  upon  the  subjects  of  ac- 
"  cidents,  strains,  simple  lameness,  contusions,  and  the  like,  which 
"  can  often  be  perfectly  cured  by  cold  lotions,  or  simple  warm 


402  H  A  X  D  Y  -  B  0  0  K    OF    II  U  S  B  A  X  D  R  T  . 

"  fomentations,  without  any  further  or  more  difficult  process, 
"though  ignorant  persons  make  much  of  them,  as  if  their  cure 
*' proved  marvelous  skill  and  required  magnificent  appliances. 

"  Before  proceeding  to  the  consideration  of  simple  accidents  and 
*'  their  treatment,  we  shall  devote  a  few  words  to  an  affection  of 
*'  the  feet,  or,  to  speak  more  correctly,  heels,  which,  although  not 
"  exactly  an  accident,  is  not  a  natural  disease,  but  arises  from  filth, 
''  neglect,  cold,  wet,  and  the  omission  to  clean  and  dry  the  feet 
"and  legs  of  the  horse,  after  work  and  exposure  to  weather.  It 
"  has  been  rightly  called  the  disgrace,  as  it  is  the  bane,  of  inferior 
"  stables  both  in  the  city  and  the  country,  but  more  commonly  in 
"  the  latter,  where,  to  pay  any  attention  to  the  legs  and  feet  of  a 
*' farm-horse,  is  an  almost  unheard-of  act  of  chivalric  Quixotism. 
"This  is  the  ailment  known  in  England  as  the  'grease,'  in  the 
"  United  States,  generally,  as  the  '  scratches.'  It  is  perfectly  easy 
"to  be  prevented,  and  easy  to  be  cured  if  taken  in  the  first 
"  instance  ;  but  if  neglected  and  allowed  to  become  virulent,  is 
"  nearly  incurable. 

"  Grease. — The  first  appearance  of  'grease,'  which  is  caused 
"  by  the  feet  and  heels  being  left  wet  after  work  in  muddy  soil, 
"and  exposed  to  a  draft  of  cold  air,  is  a  dry  and  scurfy  state  of 
"the  skin,  with  redness,  heat,  and  itching.  If  neglected,  the  hair 
"  drops  off,  the  heels  swell,  the  skin  assumes  a  glazed  appearance, 
"  is  co\ered  with  pustules,  cracks  open  and  emits  a  thin,  glairy 
"discharge,  which  soon  becomes  very  offensive.  In  the  last, 
"  worst,  and  incurable  stage,  the  leg,  halt-way  to  the  hock,  is 
"  covered  with  thick,  horny  scabs,  divided  into  lozenge-shaped 
"  lumps  by  deep  cracks,  whence  issues  an  extremely  ofi'ensive 
"matter.  In  this  stage  the  disease  is  called  '  grapy  heels,'  and  is 
"  scarcely  curable.  In  the  first  stage  all  that  is  necessary  is 
"  frequent  washing  with  tepid  water  and  Castile  soap,  and  the  ap- 
"  plication  of  a  flannel  bandage,  evenly  applied  over  the  whole 
"  limb,  moistened  with  warm  water  and  allowed  to  dry  on  the 
"  part.  An  ointment  of  one  dram  of  sugar  of  lead  in  an  ounce 
"  of  lard,  will  supple,  soften,  and  relieve  the  parts.  The  cracks 
"may  be  washed  with  a  solution  of  four  ounces  of  alum  in  a  pint 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT    OF    DOMESTIC    ANIMALS.     403 

"  of  water,  which  will  in  most  cases  suffice.  A  dose  of  medicine 
"  is  now  desirable,  for  which  the  horse  should  be  well  prepared  by 
*'  the  administration  of  bran-mashes,  as  before  advised,  for  a  couple 
"  of  days ;  after  which,  a  ball  of  four  or  five  drams  of  Barbadoes 
"  aloes  will  suffice.  An  injection  will  not  answer  in  this  case,  as 
"  the  object  is  not  to  empty  the  bowels,  but  to  cool  the  system. 
"  The  horse  should  be  fed  on  mashes,  carrots,  and  green  meat  ; 
"  oats,  Indian  corn,  and  high  food  of  all  kinds  are  to  be  avoided 
"  as  too  hcatino;. 

"  When  the  disease  has  reached  the  second  stage,  the  physick- 
*'  ing  must  be  persevered  in  for  three  doses,  with  the  regular 
"  intervals  ;  carrot  poultices  must  be  applied  to  the  heels.  This 
"  is  best  done  by  drawing  an  old  stocking  minus  the  foot,  over 
"•  the  horse's  hoof,  confining  it  around  the  fetlock  joint  with  a 
"loose  bandage,  and  filling  it  from  above  with  carrots,  boiled  and 
"  mashed  into  a  soft  pulp.  This  mass  should  be  applied  tolerably 
"  hot,  and  repeated  daily  for  three  days.  When  removed,  the 
"heels  should  be  anointed  with  an  ointment  of  one  part  of  rosin, 
"three  parts  of  lard,  melted  together,  and  one  part  of  calamine 
"  powder  added  when  the  first  mixture  is  cooling.  The  cracks 
"  should  be  persistently  washed  with  the  alum  lotion,  and  the 
"  bandage  applied  whenever  the  poultices  are  not  on  the  part. 
"  The  benefit  of  carrot  poultices  for  all  affections  where  there  is 
"  fever,  swelling,  and  a  pustular  condition  of  the  skin,  cannot  be 
"  over-rated.  Stocked  legs  and  capped  hocks  we  have  seen  com- 
*'  pletely  cured  by  them  ;  and,  on  one  occasion,  at  least,  we  have 
*'  known  incipient  farcy  to  give  way  before  their  emollient  and 
*' healing  influence.  Where  the  'grease'  has  degenerated  into 
"the  'grapes,'  the  aid  of  a  veterinary  surgeon  must  be  invoked  ; 
"  but  he  will  rarely  succeed,  as  the  ailment  is  now  all  but  incurable. 
"  It  is,  however,  only  the  height  of  neglect  which  ever  allows  the 
"  ailment  to  degenerate  into  this  filthy  and  malignant  stage  of 
"  disease." 

In  the  treatment  of  thrush,  or  any  injury  to  the  sole  of  the  hoof, 
perfect  cleansing  twice  a  day  and  a  stuffing  of  the  sole  inside  of 
the   hoof  with   a   mixture   of  tar,    cow-dung,  and   soft    clay,  will 


404  HANDY-BOOK    OF    IIUSBAXDRT. 

usually  effect  a  cure.  Strains  and  bruises  are  best  treated  bv  sim- 
ple fomentations  of  hot  water,  to  which  a  little  vinegar  mav  with 
advantage  be  added  ;  and  if  the  strain  is  in  the  pastern  joint  the 
foot  should  be  placed  in  a  pail  full  of  water,  which  should  be  kept 
by  repeated  additions  as  hot  as  the  animal  will  bear.  After  the 
removal  of  the  foot  from  the  pail,  the  part  should  be  covered  with 
thick  bandages  of  cloth,  or  wound  with  straw  ropes  ;  and  very 
warm  water  should  be  frcqucnth'  poured  upon  it. 

Farritry  includes  various  operations,  such  as  castration,  nicking, 
bleeding,  clipping  and  singeing,  trimming  the  hair,  etc.;  and  ample 
directions  concerning  its  processes  are  given  by  Herbert,  Youatt, 
Stewart,  Spooner,  and  others.  The  following  are  Mr.  Youatt's 
directions  for  castration  : — 

''  The  period  at  which  this  operation  mav  be  best  performed 
"  depends  much  on  the  breed  and  form  of  the  colt,  and  the  pur- 
"  pose  for  which  he  is  destined.  For  the  common  agricultural 
''  horse,  the  age  of  four  or  five  months  will  be  the  most  proper 
"  time,  or,  at  least,  before  he  is  weaned.  P'ew  horses  are  lost 
"  when  cut  at  that  age.  Care,  however,  should  be  taken  that  the 
*'  weather  is  not  too  hot  nor  the  flies  too  numerous. 

**  If  the  horse  is  designed  either  for  the  carriage  or  for  heavy 
"  draught,  the  farmer  should  not  think  of  castrating  him  until  he 
*' is  at  least  a  twelvemonth  old  ;  and  even  then  the  colt  should  be 
*' carefully  examined.  If  he  is  thin  and  spare  about  tlie  neck  and 
"  shoulders,  and  low  in  the  withers,  he  will  materially  improx  e  by 
"remaining  uncut  another  six  months;  but  if  his  tore-quarters 
"are  fairly  developed  at  the  age  of  a  twelvemonth,  the  operation 
"should  not  be  delayed,  i'^st  he  become  heavy  and  gross  before, 
"  and  perhaps  has  begun  too  decidedly  to  have  a  will  of  his  own. 
"  No  specific  age,  then,  can  be  fixed  ;  but  the  castration  should 
"  be  performed  rather  late  in  the  spring  or  early  in  the  autumn, 
"  when  the  air  is  temperate,  and  particularly  when  the  weather 
'*  is  dry. 

"  No  preparation  is  necessary  for  the  sucking  colt,  but  it  may 
*'  be  prudent  to  bleed  and  to  physic  one  of  more  advanced  age. 
"  In  the  majority  of  cases,  no  after-treatment   will  be  necessary. 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT    OF   DOMESTIC    ANIMALS.     405 

"  except  that  the   animal    should    be    sheltered  from   intense  heat, 
"  and  more  particularly  from  wet." 

Concerning  the  practices  of  docking  and  nicking,  which,  until 
recentlv,  were  almost  universal,  Herbert  says  : — 

"  These  barbarous  methods  of  depriving  the  horse  of  his  natural 
*'  form  and  appearance,  in  order  to  make  him  conform  to  the 
*' fashion  of  the  time,  are,  fortunately,  very  fast  going  into  disuse. 
"  If  the  tail  of  the  horse  were  given  to  him  for  no  good  purpose, 
'■*■  and  if  it  were  not  a  design  of  nature  that  he  should  have  the 
''  power  of  moving  it  forcibly  to  his  sides,  there  might  be  some 
*'  excuse  for  cutting  it  off,  within  a  few  inches  of  his  body,  or  for 
*'  separating  the  muscles  at  its  sides  to  lessen  this  power  ;  but  that 
*'  this  is  not  the  cafe,  must  be  acknowledged  by  all  who  have  seen 
''  how  a  horse,  whose  tail  "has  been  abridged  by  '  docking,'  or 
"  weakened  by  nicking,  is  annoyed  by  flies. 

*'  If  a  horse  has  a  trick  of  throwing  dirt  on  his  rider's  clothing, 
"  this  may  be  prevented  by  cutting  off  the  hair  of  the  tail,  below 
"  the  end  of  the  bones,  as  is  the  custom  with  hunters  in  England, 
*■'■  where  the  hair  is  cut  squarely  off  about  eight  or  ten  inches 
*'  above  the  hocks. 

"  No  apology  is  offered  for  not  gi\ing  in  this  work  a  description 
"  of  these  two  operations  ;  they  are  so  barbarous  and  so  senseless, 
*'  that  they  are  going  very  rapidly  out  of  fashion,  and  it  is  to  be 
''  hoped  that  they  will  ere  long  have  become  obsolete,  as  has  the 
"  croppino;  of  the  ears,  formerly  so  common  in  England. 

"  A  more  humane  way  of  setting  up  the  horse's  tail,  to 
"  give  him  a  more  stylish  appearance,  is  by  simply  weighting  it, 
'^  for  a  few  hours  each  day,  in  the  stall,  until  it  attains  the  desired 
"  elevation.  This  is  done  by  having  two  pulleys  at  the  top  of  the 
"  stall,  one  at  each  side,  through  which  are  passed  two  ropes,* 
*'  which  come  together  and  are  fastened  to  the  tail,  the  ropes  hav- 
*' ing  at  their  other  ends  weights,  (bags  of  sand  or  of  shot  are  very 
"good  for  the  purpose,)  which  must  be  light  at  first,  and  may  be 
"  increased  from  day  to  day.  The  weighting  should  be  continued 
"  until  the  tail  has  taken  a  permanent  position  as  desired.  It  is 
*'  true  that  this  method  requires  a  somewhat  longer  time  than  that 


406  II  ANDY- BOOK    OF    IILTSBAXDRY. 

'of  cutting  the  muscles,  but  while   it   is   being  done  the  horse  is 
'never  off  his  work,  and  he  suffers  infinitely  less  pain, 

*' The  method  of  nicking  or  pricking,  as  usually  performed  in 
'  this  country,  is  not  quite  so  cruel  or  so  hazardous  as  the  cutting 
'  of  the  muscles  ;  it  is  thus  described  in  Stewart's  '  Stable  Book ': — 
"  'The  tail  has  four  cords,  two  upper  and  two  lower.  The 
'  upper  ones  raise  the  tail,  the  lower  ones  depress  it,  and  these 
'  last  alone  are  to  be  cut.  Take  a  sharp  penknife  with  a  long 
'  slender  blade ;  insert  the  blade  between  the  bone  and  un- 
'  der  cord,  two  inches  from  the  body  ;  place  the  thumb  of  the 
'hand  holding  the  knife  against  the  under  part  of  the  tail,  and 
'  opposite  the  blade.  Then  press  the  blade  toward  the  thumb 
'against  the  cord,  and  cut  the  cord  off,  but  do  not  let  the  knife 
'  cut  through  the  skin.  The  cord  is  firm,  and  it  will  easily  be 
'  known  when  it  is  cut  off.  The  thumb  will  tell  when  to  desist 
'  that  the  skin  may  not  be  cut.  Sever  the  cord  twice  on  each 
'side  in  the  same  manner.  Let  the  cuts  be  two  inches  apart. 
'  The  cord  is  nearly  destitute  of  sensation  ;  yet,  when  the  tail  is 
'pricked  in  the  old  manner,  the  wound  to  the  skin  and  flesh  is 
'  severe,  and  much  fever  is  induced,  and  it  takes  a  long  time  to 
'  heal.  But  with  this  method  the  horse's  tail  will  not  bleed,  nor 
'will  it  be  sore,  under  ordinary  circumstances,  more  than  three 
'  days  ;  and  he  will  be  pulleyed  and  his  tail  made  in  one-half  of 
'the  time  required  by  the  old  method."' 

In  this  connection  it  is  important  to  give  some  attention  to  the 
question  of  shoeing  horses  ;  a  department  of  farriery  in  which  the 
world  has  received  much  assistance  from  the  little  work  of  .\Ir. 
Miles.*  He  illustrates  the  construction  of  the  foot  by  the  follow- 
ing cuts,  (Figs.  68  to  70,)  which,  with  their  accompanying 
description  and  the  following  extracts  from  his  work,  will  be 
readily  understood  : — 

"  The  hoof  is  divided  into  horny  crust   or  wall,  sole,  and  froo^. 

"  The  horny  crust   is  secreted  by  the   numerous   blood-vessels, 

"  that  soft,  protruding  band  which  encircles  the  upper  edge  of  the 

*  Miles  on  the  Horse's  Foot.      O.  JudJ  Sc  Co.,  New  York. 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT    OF   DOMESTIC   ANIMALS.     407 

"  hoof,  immediately  beneath  the  termination  of  the  hair  ;  and  is 
"  divided  into  toe,  quarters,  heels,  and  bars.  Its  texture  is  in- 
"  sensible,  but  elastic  throughout  its  whole  extent  ;  and,  yielding 
"  to  the  weight  of  the   horse,  allows   the   horny  sole  to  descend, 

Fig.    68. 


"  whereby  much  inconvenient  concussion  of  the  internal  parts  of 
"the  foot  is  avoided.  But  if  a  large  portion  of  the  circumference 
"  of  the  foot  be  fettered  by  iron  and  nails,  it  is  obvious  that  that 
"portion,  at  least,  cannot  expand  as  before  ;  and  the  beautiful  and 


Fig.   69. 


"  efficient  apparatus  for  effecting  this  necessary  elasticity,  being 
"  no  longer  allowed  to  act  by  reason  of  these  restraints,  becomes 
"altered  in  structure:  and  the  continued  operation  of  the  same 
"  causes,  in  the  end,  circumscribes   the  elasticity  to  those  parts 


408 


HANDY- DO  OK    OF    11  USB  AN  DRY, 


*■'•  alone  where  no  nails  have  been  driven, — giving  rise  to  a  train 
*' of  consequences  destructive  to  the  soundness  of  the  foot,  and 
*■*■  fatal  to  the  usefulness  of  the  horse. 

"  The  toe  of  the  forefoot  is  the  thickest  and  strongest  portion 
*'  of  the  hoof,  and  is  in  consequence  less  expansive  than  any  other 
'■'•  part,  and  therefore  better  calculated  to  resist  the  efFect  of  the 
'■'•  nails  and  shoe.  The  thickness  of  the  horn  gradually  diminishes 
"  toward  the  quarters  and  heels,  particularly  on  the  inner  side  of 
*'  the  foot,  whereby  the  power  of  yielding  and  expanding  to  the 
*'  weight  of  the  horse  is  proportionably  increased,  clearly  indicat- 
'*  ing  that  those  parts  cannot  be  nailed  to  an  unyielding  bar  of  iron, 


Fig.    70. 


*'  without  a  most  mischievous  interference  with  the  natural  func- 
*' tions  of  the  foot.  In  the  hind-foot,  the  greatest  thickness  of 
"horn  will  be  found  at  the  quarters  and  heels,  and  not,  as  in  the 
*'  forefoot,  at  the  toe.  This  difference  in  the  thickness  of  horn 
*'  is  beautifully  adapted  to  the  inequality  of  the  weight  which  each 
"  has  to  sustain,  the  force  with  which  it  is  applied,  and  the  por- 
"  tions  of  the  hoof  upon  which  it  falls.  The  toe  of  the  forefoot 
^'  encounters  the  combined  force  and  weight  of  the  forehand  and 
"body,  and  consequently,  in  a  state  of  nature,  is  exposed  to  con- 
*'  siderable  wear  and  tear,  and  calls  for  greater  strength  and  sub- 
**  stance  of  horn   than    is    needed  by  any  portion  of    the  hind- 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT   OF   DOMESTIC   ANIMALS.     409 

"  foot,  where  the  duty  of  supporting  the  hinder  parts  alone  is 
"distributed  over  the  quarters  and  heels  of  both  sides  of  the  foot. 

"  The  bars  are  continuations  of  the  wall,  reflected  at  the  heels 
"  toward  the  center  of  the  foot,  where  thev  meet  in  a  point,  leav- 
"  ing  a  triangular  space  between  them  for  the  frog. 

"  The  whole  inner  surface  of  the  horny  crust,  from  the  center 
"  of  the  toe  to  the  point  where  the  bars  meet,  is  everywhere  lined 
i"  with  innumerable  narrow,  thin,  and  projecting  horny  plates, 
*'  which  extend  in  a  slanting  direction  from  the  upper  edge  of  the 
"  wall  to  the  line  of  junction  between  it  and  the  sole,  and  possess 
"  great  elasticity.  These  projecting  plates  are  the  means  of  greatly 
*'  extending  the  surface  of  attachment  of  the  hoof  to  the  coffin- 
"  bone,  which  is  likewise  covered  by  a  similar  arrangement  of  pro- 
*'jecting  plates,  but  of  a  highly  vascular  and  sensitive  character; 
*' and  these,  dovetailing  with  the  horny  projections  above  named, 
*'  constitute  a  union  combining  strength  and  elasticity  in  a  won- 
"  derful  degree. 

"  The  horny  sole  covers  the  whole  inferior  surface  of  the  foot, 
"  excepting  the  frog.  In  a  well-formed  foot  it  presents  an  arched 
"  appearance  and  possesses  considerable  elasticity,  by  virtue  of 
"  which  it  ascends  and  descends,  as  the  weight  above  is  either  sud- 
"  denly  removed  from  it  or  forcibly  applied  to  it.  This  descending 
"  property  of  the  sole  calls  for  our  special  consideration  in  direct- 
*'  ing  the  form  of  the  shoe  ;  for,  if  the  shoe  be  so  formed  that  the 
*'  horny  sole  rests  upon  it,  it  cannot  descend  lower;  and  the  sen- 
*'  sible  sole  above,  becoming  squeezed  between  the  edges  of  the 
*'  coffin-bone  and  the  horn,  produces  inflammation,  and  perhaps 
"  abscess.  The  effect  of  this  squeezing  of  the  sensible  sole  is 
*'  most  commonly  witnessed  at  the  angle  of  the  inner  heel,  where 
*'  the  descending  heel  of  the  coffin-bone,  forcibly  pressing  the  vas- 
"  cular  sole  upon  the  horny  sole,  ruptures  a  small  blood-vessel, 
*'  and  produces  what  is  called  a  corn,  but  which  is,  in  fact,  a  bruise. 

"  The  horny  frog  occupies  the  greater  part  of  the  triangular 
"  space  between  the  bars,  and  extends  from  the  hindermost  part 
*'  of  the  foot  to  the  center  of  the  sole,  just  over  the  point  where 
"  the  bars  meet  ;  but  is  united  to  them  only  at  their  upper  edge  : 


410  HANDY -BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

*'  the  sides  remain  unattached  and  separate,  and  form  the  channels 
"  called  the  *  Commissures.'  " 

The  principles  on  which  Miles  bases  his  directions  for  shoeing 
are,  that,  as  at  every  step  of  the  horse  the  crust  or  wall  of  the 
hoof  expands  and  contracts,  this  alternate  movement  being  neces- 
sary to  the  natural  performance  of  the  act,  the  shoeing  should  be 
so  done  as  in  nowise  to  prevent  it  ;  that,  as  the  bars  of  the  hoof 
are  naturally  intended  to  receive  a  very  large  proportion  of  the 
burden  in  the  stepping  of  the  horse,  the  shoe  should  be  broad  at 
the  heel  and  should  rest  well  upon  them,  thev  not  having  been  cut 
away,  as  is  the  too  frequent  custom,  so  as  not  to  touch  it  ;  that, 
as  the  sole  of  the  hoof  inside  of  the  wall  is  much  subject  to  injury 
if  constantly  pressed,  the  inner  surface  of  the  shoe  should  be  so 
beveled  off  as  to  allow  it  to  be  easily  cleaned  out  and  to  render  it 
little  likely  that  pebble-stones  or  other  matters  will  lodge  inside  of 
it  ;  and  that  the  shoeing  should  be  so  done  that  there  will  be  little 
danger  of  the  hoof  working  forward  off  of  the  shoe. 

Mr.  Miles'  system  of  shoeing,  which  is  onlv  a  modification  of 
the  commonest  practices,  requires  that  the  hoof  be  exactly  fitted  by 
the  shoe,  and  that  no  effort  be  made  to  fit  it  to  an  improperly 
shaped  shoe,  the  assumption  being  that  nature  understands,  better 
than  the  blacksmith  does,  what  is  necessarv  in  this  respect.  The 
manner  in  which  the  shoe  supports  the  wall  and  bars  of  the  hoof 
is  shown  in  Fig.  71.  The  shoe  itself,  with  its  beveled  upper 
surface,  the  projecting  point  in  front  to  prevent  the  hoof  from  slip- 
ping forward,  and  the  broad  heel,  are  shown  in  Fig.  72.  It  will 
be  seen  that  this  shoe  has  but  six  nail-holes,  only  two  of  which 
are  upon  the  inside,  and  none  of  which  reach  farther  back  than 
the  center  of  the  hoof.  This  is  the  chief  improvement  that  Mr. 
Miles  introduced,  and  it  has  come  into  quite  general  use  among 
all  good  horsemen.  So  far  from  the  securitv  of  the  shoe  being 
lessened  by  this  apparent  insufficiency  of  nailing,  it  is  found  in 
practice  that  it  is  actually  increased.  I  have  had  mv  own  horses 
(some  of  them  saddle-horses,  doing  hard  work  over  rough,  moun- 
tainous roads)  shod  in  strict  accordance  with  this  principle,  for 
more  than  ten  years  past  ;  and  the  shoes  have  almost  invariably 


MEDICxVL   TREATMENT   OF   DOMESTIC    ANIMALS.     411 

remained   in   their   places   until   the  growth   of  the  hoof,   or  the 

wearing  out  of  the  iron,  required  them  to  be  renewed  or  removed. 

When  the  nailing  is  continued  around  on  the  inside  as  far  as 

Fig.   71. 


the  center  of  the  hoof,  and  on  the  outside  still  farther  to  the  rear, 
the  shoe  acts  as  an  iron  clamp  to  prevent  the  expansion  of  the 
hoof,  and  the  effort  toward  expansion  being  constantly  exercised 

Fig.   72.    . 


at  every  step  that  the  horse  takes,  the  nails  become  loosened  in 
the  wall,  and  the  shoe  is  much  more  likelv  to  be  cast.  With  the 
smaller  number  of  nails,  all  of  them  being  placed  in  that  part  of 


412  IIANUY-BOOK    UF    11  U  Sli  A  N  I»  R  Y . 

the  hoof  where  the  movement  in  expansion  and  contraction  is 
very  slight,  that  part  of  the  hoof  which  is  required  to  make  the 
greatest  movement  is  left  free  to  move  over  the  shoe  ;  and  the 
natural  action  of  the  parts  is  preserved,  so  far  as,  in  the  artificial 
condition,  it  is  possible  that  it  should  be.  Concerning  the  paring 
of  the  hoof  in  shoeing,  Youatt  says  : — 

"  The  act  of  paring  is  a  work  of  much  more  labor  than  the  proprietor  of  the 
horse  often  imagines.  The  smith,  except  he  is  overiooi<ed,  will  frequently  give 
himself  as  little  trouble  about  it  as  he  can ;  and  that  portion  of  horn  which,  in  the 
unshod  foot,  would  be  worn  away  by  contact  with  the  ground,  is  suffered  to  accu- 
mulate month  after  month,  until  the  elasticity  of  the  sole  is  destroyed,  and  it  can 
no  longer  descend,  and  its  other  functions  are  impeded,  and  foundation  is  laid  for 
corn,  and  contraction,  and  navicular  disease,  and  inflammation.  Tliat  poition  of 
horn  should  be  left  on  the  foot  which  will  defend  the  internal  parts  from  being 
bruised,  and  yet  suffer  the  external  sole  to  descend.  How  is  this  to  be  ascertained  ? 
The  strong  pressure  of  the  thumb  of  the  smith  will  be  the  best  guide.  The  buttress, 
that  most  destructive  of  all  instruments,  being,  except  on  very  particular  occasions, 
banished  from  every  respectable  forge,  the  smith  sets  to  work  with  his  drawing- 
knife  and  removes  the  growth  of  ht)rn,  until  the  sole  will  yield,  although  in  liie 
slightest  possible  degree,  to  the  strong  pressure  of  his  thumb.  The  proper  thick- 
ness of  horn  will  then  remain. 

"The  quantity  of  horn  to  be  removed,  in  order  to  leave  the  proper  degree  of 
thickness,  will  vary  with  different  feet.  From  the  strong  foot,  a  great  deal  must 
be  taken.  From  the  concave  foot  the  horn  may  be  removed,  until  the  sole  will 
yield  to  a  moderate  pressure.  From  the  flat  foot,  little  need  be  pared;  while  the 
pumiced  foot  should  be  deprived  of  nothing  but  the  ragged  parts. 

"  The  crust  should  be  reduced  to  a  perfect  level  all  round,  but  left  a  little  higher 
than  the  sole,  or  the  sole  will  be  bruised  by  its  pressure  on  the  edge  of  the  seating. 

"  The  heels  will  require  considerable  attention.  From  the  stress  which  is  thrown 
on  the  inner  heel,  and  from  the  weakness  of  the  quarter  there,  the  horn  usually 
wears  away  considerably  faster  than  it  would  on  the  outer  one;  and  if  an  equal 
portion  of  horn  were  pared  from  it,  it  would  be  left  lower  than  the  outer  heel.  The 
smith  should  therefore  accommodate  his  paring  to  the  comjiarative  wear  of  the 
heel,  and  be  exceedingly  careful  to  leave  them  precisely  level." 

Miles  recommends  that  the  frog  of  the  hoof  be  left  entirely  to 
itself,  and  never  touched  with  the  knife  at  all,  for  the  reason  that, 
as  fast  as  the  superfluous  horn  is  formed,  it  will  be  removed  by  a 
natural  shelling,  and  its  raggedncss  can  do  no  harm.  Within  a 
few  months  after  the  paring  of  the  frog  has  ceased,  it  will  have  the 
character  of  the  frog  of  a  horse  at  pasture,  which  is  alwavs,  when 
in  a  state  of  health,  sound  and  smooth. 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT   OF   DOMESTIC   ANIMALS,      413 

THE    GOODENOUGH   SYSTEM    OF    HORSESHOEING. 

The  Goodenough  system  has  now  had  a  sufficient  trial  to  establish 
its  claim  to  general  favor.  It  has  been  adopted,  after  critical  tests, 
for  the  U.  S.  Cavalry  service,  and  i'or  some  of  the  largest  and  best- 
managed  omnibus  and  street-railroad  companies  in  New  York  and 
Boston.  It  is  now  being  favorably  introduced  in  Europe.  Its  pur- 
pose is  simply  to  protect  the  rim  of  the  hoof  from  becoming  broken 
and  worn,  to  raise  the  sole  of  the  foot  from  the  ground  sufficiently  to 
save  it  from  bruising,  and  to  allow  the  back  part  of  the  frog  to  rest  on 
the  ground,  and  to  relieve  the  shock  of  the  step  by  the  "  buffer  "-like 
action  for  which  Nature  intended  it.  The  process  is  a  simple  one, 
any  good  shoeing-smith  being  able  to  apply  it  with  no  stock  beyond 
a  supply  of  "Goodenough"  shoes.  Where  these  shoes  cannot  be 
procured,  it  will  answer  a  good  purpose  to  use  narrow  "tips," 
drawn  down  quite  thin  at  the  rear,  so  as  to  allow  the  frog  to  come 
to  the  ground.  The  cutting  of  the  foot  should  be  simply  what  is 
needed  to  compensate  for  the  loss  of  natural  wear.  The  frog  should 
not  be  cut  at  all,  and  the  corn-points  inside  the  bars  should  be  pared 
down  barely  enough  to  make  sure  that  they  are  below  the  bearing  of 
the  shoe. 

As  to  the  need  for  applying  to  a  veterinary  surgeon,  except  for 
accidents,  it  may  be  said  that  with  a  clean  skin  and  abundance  of 
pure  air,  protection  against  cold  drafts,  and  suitable  food  adminis- 
tered regularly  and  in  proper  quantity,  it  will  be  but  rarely  that 
horses  of  good  constitution  will  require  any  further  remedy  than 
the  curry-comb,  the  bran-bin,  and  warm  water  afford. 

HORNED    CATTLE. 

In  the  treatment  of  dairy  stock  and  other  horned  cattle,  the 
extent  to  which  it  becomes  necessary  to  resort  to  medical  or  surgi- 
cal treatment,  except  for  very  simple  ailments,  will  be,  in  a  great 
degree,  in  proportion  to  the  observance  or  neglect  of  the  funda- 
mental principles  of  breeding  and  management.  Long-continued 
in-and-in  breeding,  or  the  breeding  from  sires  and  dams  tainted 
with  hereditary  diseases,  or  weakened  by  neglect  or  ill-treatment, 
will  inevitably  result  in  the  deterioration  of  the  stock  ;  and  medi- 
cal treatment  will  become  more  and  more  necessary,  while  such 
injurious  breeding   is   continued.     Deprivation  of  pure   air,  pure 


414  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

water,  comfortable  quarters,  good  and  varied  food,  will  also  almost 
inevitably  introduce  troublesome  and  expensive  diseases. 

The  same  may  be  said  in  this  case  as  has  just  been  said  of  the 
treatment  of  horses,  that  is,  that  simple  remedies  sensibly  applied, 
the  calling  in  of  skillful  medical  assistants  whenever  medical  assist- 
ance is  required,  and  the  keeping  of  the  animal  under  all  circum- 
stances in  the  healthiest  possible  condition,  will  generally  effect  the 
desired  cure,  so  that  blistering  and  bleeding  and  purging  need 
almost  never  be  resorted  to,  and  should  never  be  adopted  without 
sound  advice. 

f'lint  gives  the  following  directions  for  the  treatment  of  several 
of  the  more  prevalent  complaints: — 

*'  Garget  is  an  inflammation  of  the  internal  substance  of  the 
"  udder.  One  or  more  of  the  teats,  or  whole  sections  of  the  udder 
*■'■  become  enlarged  and  thickened,  hot,  tender,  and  painful.  The 
"  milk  coagulates  and  thickens  in  the  bag  and  causes  inflammation 
''  where  it  is  deposited,  which  is  accompanied  by  fe\er.  It  most 
*' commonly  occurs  in  young  cows  after  calving,  especially  when 
"  in  too  high  condition.  The  secretion  of  milk  is  very  much 
*'  lessened,  and  in  very  bad  cases,  stopped  altogether.  Sometimes 
"  the  milk  is  thick,  and  mixed  with  blood.  Often,  also,  in  severe 
"cases,  the  hind  extremities,  as  the  hip-joint,  hock,  or  fetlock,  are 
"  swollen  and  inflamed  to  such  an  extent  that  the  animal  car.not 
"  rise.  The  simplest  remedy,  in  mild  cases,  is  to  put  the  calf  to 
"  its  mother  several  times  a  day.  This  will  remove  the  flow  of 
"  milk,  and  often  dispel  the  congestion. 

*'  Sometimes  the  udder  is  so  much  swollen  that  the  cow  will  not 
"  permit  the  calf  to  suck.  If  the  fever  increases,  the  appetite 
"  declines,  and  rumination  ceases.  In  this  stage  of  the  complaint 
"  the  advice  of  a  scientific  veterinary  practitioner  is  required.  A 
"  dose  of  purging  medicine,  and  frequent  washing  of  the  udder  in 
"  mi/d  cases,  are  usually  successful.  The  physic  should  consist 
"of  Epsom  salts  one  pound,  ginger  half  an  ounce,  nitrate  of  po- 
*'  tassa  half  an  ounce,  dissolved  in  a  quart  of  boiling  water  ;  then 
**  add  a  gill  of  molasses,  and  give  to  the  cow  lukewarm.  Diet  mod- 
**  crate  :  that  is,  on  bran  ;  or,  if  in  summer,  green   food.     There 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT   OF   DOMESTIC   ANIMALS.     415 

*'  are  various  medicines  for  the  different  forms  and  stages  of  garget, 
"  which,  if  the  above  medicine  fails,  can  be  properly  prescribed 
"only  by  a  ski'lful  veterinary  practitioner. 

"  It  is  important  that  the  udder  should  be  frequently  examined, 
"  as  matter  may  be  forming  which  should  be  immediately  released. 
*'  Various  causes  are  assigned  for  this  disease,  such  as  exposure  to 
"  cold  and  wet,  or  the  want  of  proper  care  and  attention  in  partu- 
"rition." 

[In  addition  to  the  foregoing,  or,  indeed,  before  any  medicine  is 
used,  it  is  strongly  to  be  recommended  that  copious  and  frequent 
spongings  with  cool  water  be  thoroughly  tried,  as  many  cases  of 
apparently  obdurate  character  have  yielded  completely  to  this 
simple  treatment.] 

*  *  *  jK  *  *  * 

"  Puerperal  or  Milk.  Fever. — Calving  is  often  attended  with 
"  feverish  excitement.  The  change  of  powerful  action  from  the 
*'  womb  to  the  udder  causes  much  constitutional  disturbance  and 
"  local  inflammation.  A  cow  is  subject  to  nervousness  in  such 
*'  circumstances,  which  sometimes  extends  to  the  whole  system, 
''  and  causes  puerperal  fever.  This  complaint  is  called  dropp'uig 
"  after  calving,  because  it  succeeds  that  piocess.  The  prominent 
"  symptom  is  a  loss  of  power  over  the  motion  of  the  hind  extremi- 
"  ties,  and  inability  to  stand  ;  sometimes  loss  of  sensibility  in 
"these  parts,  so  that  a  deep  puncture  with  a  pin  or  other  sharp 
*'  instrument  is  unfelt. 

"This  disease  is  much  to  be  dreaded  by  the  farmer,  on  account 
*'  of  the  high  state  of  excitement  and  the  local  inflammation. 
*'  Either  from  neglect  or  ignorance,  the  malady  is  not  discovered 
*' until  the  manageable  symptoms  have  passed,  and  extreme 
*'  debility  has  appeared.  The  animal  is  often  first  seen  lying 
*■'■  down,  unable  to  rise  ;  prostration  of  the  strength  and  violent 
*'  fever  are  brought  on  by  inflammation  of  the  womb.  But  soon 
*•  a  general  inflammatory  action  succeeds,  rapid  and  violent,  with 
*'  complete  prostration  of  all  the  vital  forces,  bidding  defiance  to 
"  the  best-selected  remedies. 
27 


416  HANDY-BOOK    OF    nUSBANDRT. 

"  Cows  in  very  high  condition,  and  cattle  removed  from  low 
keeping  to  high  feeding,  are  the  most  liable  to  puerperal  fever. 
It  occurs  most  frequently  during  the  hot  weather  of  summer, 
and  then  it  is  most  dangerous.  When  it  occurs  in  winter,  cows 
sometimes  recover.  In  hot  weather  they  usually  die. 
"  Milk  fever  may  be  induced  by  the  hot  drinks  often  given  after 
cahing.  A  young  cow  at  her  first  calving  is  rarely  attacked 
with  it.  Great  milkers  are  most  commonly  subject  to  it  ;  but 
all  cows  have  generallv  more  or  less  fever  at  calving,  A  little 
addition  to  it,  by  improper  treatment  or  neglect,  will  prevent 
the  secretion  of  milk  ;  and  thus  the  milk,  being  thrown  back 
into  the  system,  will  increase  the  inflammation. 
"This  disease  sometimes  shows  itself  in  the  short  space  of  two 
or  three  hours  after  calving,  but  often  not  under  two  or  three 
days.  It  four  or  five  days  have  passed,  the  cow  may  generally 
be  considered  safe.  The  earliest  symptoms  of  this  disease  are 
as  follows  : — 

"The  animal  is  restless,  frequently  shifting  her  position  ;  occa- 
sionally pawing  and  heaving  at  the  flanks.  Muzzle  hot  and 
dry,  the  mouth  open,  and  tongue  out  at  one  side  ;  countenance 
wild  ;  eyes  staring.  She  moans  often,  and  soon  becomes  very 
irritable.  Delirium  follows  ;  she  grates  her  teeth,  foams  at  the 
mouth,  tosses  her  head  about,  and  frequently  injures  herself. 
From  the  first  the  udder  is  hot,  enlarged,  and  tender  ;  and  if 
this  swelling  is  attended  by  a  suspension  of  milk,  the  cause  is 
clear.  As  the  case  is  inflammatorv,  its  treatment  must  be  in 
accordance  ;  and  it  is  usually  subdued  without  much  difficulty. 
Mr.  Youatt  says  :  *  The  animal  should  be  bled,  and  the  quantity 
regulated  by  the  impression  made  upon  the  circulation, — from 
six  to  ten  quarts  often  before  the  desired  efi^ect  is  produced.' 
He  wrote  at  a  time  when  bleeding  was  adopted  as  the  universal 
cure,  and  before  the  general  reasoning  and  treatment  of  diseases 
of  the  human  system  was  applied  to  similar  diseases  of  animals. 
The  cases  are  very  rare,  indeed,  where  the  ph\sician  of  the  pres- 
ent day  finds  it  necessary  to  bleed  in  diseases  of  the  human 
subject  ;  and   they   are   equally   rare,    I   apprehend,  where   it    is 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT   OF   DOMESTIC   ANIMALS.    417 

"really  necessary  or  judicious  to  bleed  for  the  diseases  of  animals. 
"  A  more  humane  and  equally  effectual  course  will  be  the  fol- 
"  lowing  : — 

"  A  pound  to  one  and  a  half  pounds  of  Epsom  or  Glauber's 
*'  salts,  according  to  the  size  and  condition  of  the  animal,  should 
*' be  given,  dissolved  in  a  quart  of  boiling  water  ;  and  when  dis- 
"  solved,  add  pulverized  red  pepper,  a  quarter  of  an  ounce,  car- 
"  away,  do.,  do.,  ginger,  do.,  do.  ;  mix,  and  add  a  gill  of  molasses, 
"  and  give  lukewarm.  If  this  medicine  does  not  act  on  the 
"bowels,  the  quantity  of  ginger,  capsicum,  and  caraway,  must  be 
"  doubled.  The  insensible  stomach  must  be  roused.  When 
"  purging  in  an  early  stage  is  begun,  the  fever  will  more  readily 
"subside.  After  the  operation  of  the  medicine,  sedatives  may  be 
*' given,  if  necessary. 

"  The  digestive  function  first  fails,  when  the  secondary  or  low 
"  state  of  fever  comes  on.  The  food  undischarged  ferments  ;  the 
"  stomach  and  intestines  are  inflated  with  gas,  and  swell  rapidly. 
'*  The  nervous  system  is  also  attacked,  and  the  poor  beast  stag- 
"  gers.  The  hind  extremities  show  the  weakness  ;  the  cow  falls, 
"  and  cannot  rise  ;  her  head  is  turned  on  one  side,  where  it  rests  ; 
*' her  limbs  are  palsied.  The  treatment  in  this  stage  must  depend 
*' on  the  existence  and  degree  of  fever.  The  pulse  will  be  the 
*'  only  true  guide.  If  it  is  weak,  wavering,  and  irregular,  we  must 
"avoid  depleting,  purgative  agents.  The  blood  flows  through  the 
"  arteries,  impelled  by  the  action  of  the  heart,  and  its  pulsations 
"can  be  very  distinctly  felt  by  pressing  the  finger  upon  almost 
"  any  of  these  arteries  that  is  not  too  thickly  covered  by  fat 
"  or  the  cellular  tissues  of  the  skin,  especially  where  it  can 
"  be  pressed  upon  some  hard  or  bony  substance  beneath  it.  The 
"  most  convenient  place  is  directlv  at  the  back  part  of  the  lower 
"jaw,  where  a  large  artery  passes  over  the  edge  of  the  jaw-bone 
*'  to  ramify  on  the  face.  The  natural  pulse  of  a  full-grown  ox, 
"  will  vary  from  about  forty-eight  to  fifty-five  beats  a  minute  ; 
"that  of  a  cow  is  rather  quicker,  especially  near  the  time  of  calv- 
"  ing  ;  and  that  of  a  calf  is  quicker  than  that  of  a  cow.  But  a 
**  very  much  quicker  rate  than  that  indicated  will  show  a  feverish 


418  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"  State,  or   inflammation  ;   and  a  much  slower   pulsation  indicates 

"  debility  of  some  kind." 

******* 

"  No  powerful  medicines  should  be  used  without  discretion  ;  for 
"in  the  milder  forms  of  the  disease,  as  the  simple  palsy  of  the 
"  hinder  extremities,  the  treatment,  though  of  a  similar  character, 
"  should  be  less  powerful,  and  every  effort  should  be  made  for  the 
"  comfort  of  the  cow,  by  providing  a  thick  bed  of  straw,  and  rais- 
"  ing  the  fore-quarters  to  assist  the  efforts  of  nature,  while  all  filth 
"  should  be  promptly  and  carefully  removed.  Slie  may  be  covered 
"  with  a  warm  cloth,  and  warm  gruel  should  be  trequcntlv  offered 
*'  to  her,  and  light  mashes.  An  attempt  should  be  made  several 
"  times  a  day  to  bring  milk  from  the  teats.  The  return  of  milk 
*'.  is  an  indication  of  speedy  reco\ery. 

"Milch  cows  in  too  high  condition  appear  to  have  a  constitu- 
*'  tional  tendency  to  this  complaint,  and  one  attack  of  it  predisposes 
"  them  to  another. 

"  Simple  Fever, — This  may  be  considered  as  increased  arterial 
"action,  with  or  without  any  local  affection;  or  it  may  be  the 
"  consequence  of  the  sympathy  of  the  system  with  the  morbid 
"  condition  of  some  particular  part.  The  first  is  pure  or  idiopathic 
"  fever  ;  the  other,  symptomatic  fever.  Pure  fever  is  of  frequent 
"  occurrence  in  cattle.  Symptoms  as  follows  :  muzzle  dry  ;  ru- 
"  mination  slow  or  entirely  suspended  ;  respiration  slightly  accel- 
"  erated  ;  the  horn  at  the  root  hot,  and  its  other  extremity 
"  frequently  cold  ;  pulse  quick  ;  bowels  constipated  ;  coat  staring, 
"  and  the  cow  is  usually  seen  separated  from  the  rest  of  the  herd. 
"  In  slight  attacks  a  cathartic  of  salts,  sulphur,  and  ginger  is 
*'  sufficient.  But  if  the  common  fever  is  neglected,  or  improperly 
"  treated,  it  may  assume,  after  a  time,  a  local  determination,  as 
"  pleurisy,  or  inflammation  of  the  lungs  or  bowels.  In  such  cases 
"  the  above  remedy  would  be  insufficient,  and  a  veterinary  surgeon, 
*'  to  manage  the  case,  would  be  necessary.  Symptomatic  fever  is 
"  more  dangerous,  and  is  commonly  the  result  of  injury,  the 
"  neighboring  parts  sympathizing  with  the  injured  part.  Cattle 
'^  become  unwell,  are  stinted  in  their  feed,  have  a  dose  of  physic, 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT   OF   DOMESTIC   ANIMALS.    419 

"and  in  a  few  davs  are  well  ;  still,  a  fever  may  terminate  in  some 
"  local  affection.  But  in  both  cases  pure  fever  is  the  primary 
"  disease. 

"  A  more  dangerous  form  of  fever  is  that  known  as  Symptom- 
*'  ATic.  As  we  have  said,  cattle  are  not  only  subject  to  fever  of 
"  common  intensity,  but  to  symptomatic  fever,  and  thousands  die 
"annually  from  its  effects.  But  the  young  and  the  most  thriving 
"are  its  victims.  There  are  few  premonitory  symptoms  of 
"  symptomatic  fever.  It  often  appears  without  any  previous  indi- 
"  cations  of  illness.  The  animal  stands  with  her  neck  extended, 
"  her  eyes  protruding  and  red,  muzzle  dry,  nostrils  expanded, 
"  breath  hot,  base  of  the  horn  hot,  mouth  open,  pulse  full, 
"breathing  quick.  She  is  often  moaning;  rumination  and  appe- 
"  tite  are  suspended  ;  she  soon  becomes  more  uneasy ;  changes  her 
"  position  often.  Unless  these  symptoms  are  speedily  removed, 
"  she  dies  in  a  few  hours.  The  name  of  the  ailment,  inflam- 
"  matory  or  symptomatic  fever,  shows  the  treatment  necessary, 
"which  must  commence  with  purging.  Salts  here,  as  in  most 
"  inflammatory  diseases,  are  the  most  reliable.  From  a  pound  to 
*' a  pound  and  a  half,  with  ginger  and  sulphur,  is  a  dose,  dissolved 
*'  in  warm  water  or  thin  gruel.  If  this  does  not  operate  in  twelve 
"hours,  give  half  the  dose,  and  repeat  once  in  twelve  hours,  until 
'^the  bowels  are  freed.  After  the  operation  of  the  medicine  the 
"  animal  is  relieved.  Then  sedative  medicines  may  be  given. 
*' Sal  ammoniac,  one  dram;  powdered  niter,  two  drams,  should 
"be  administered  in  thin  gruel,  two  or  three  times  a  day,  if 
*'  required. 

"Typhus  Fever,  common  in  some  countries,  is  little  known 
"  here  among  cattle. 

"  Typhoid  Fever  sometimes  follows  intense  inflammatory 
"  action,  and  is  considered  the  second  stage  of  it.  This  form  of 
"  fever  is  usually  attended  with  diarrhea.  It  is  a  debilitating  com- 
"  plaint,  and  is  sometimes  followed  by  diseases  known  as  black 
"  tongue,  black  leg,  or  quarter-evil.  The  cause  of  typhoid  fever 
*^is  involved  in  obscurity.  It  may  be  proper  to  say  that  copious 
'*  drinks   of   oatmeal  gruel,  with   tincture  of   red   pepper,  a   diet 


420  II  ANDY -BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"  of  bran,  warmth  to  the  body,  and  pure  air,  are  great  essentials  in 
"  the  treatment  of  this  disease. 

"The  barbarous  practices  of  boring  the  horns,  cutting  the  tail, 
"and  others  equally  absurd,  should  at  once  and  forever  be  dis- 
"  carded  by  every  farmer  and  dairyman.  Alternate  heat  or  cold- 
"  ness  of  the  horn  is  only  a  symptom  of  this  and  other  fevers,  and 
"  has  nothing  to  do  with  their  cause.  The  horns  are  not  diseased 
"any  further  than  a  determination  of  blood  to  the  head  causes 
"  a  sympathetic  heat,  while  an  unnatural  distribution  of  blood, 
'*  from  exposure  or  other  cause,  may  make  them  cold. 

"  In  all  cases  of  this  kind,  if  any  thing  is  done,  it  should  be  an 
"  effort  to  assist  nature  to  regulate  the  animal  system,  by  rousing 
"  the  digestive  organs  to  their  natural  action,  by  a  light  food,  or, 
"■  if  necessary,  a  mild  purgative  medicine,  followed  by  light  stimu- 
"  lants. 

"The  principal  purgati\c  medicines  in  use  for  neat  cattle  are 
"  Epsom  salts,  linseed  oil,  and  sulpliur.  A  pound  of  salts  will 
"ordinarily  be  sufficient  to  purge  a  full-grown  cow. 

•^'A  slight  purgative  drink  is  often  very  useful  for  cows  soon 
"after  calving,  particularly  if  feverish,  an  1  in  cases  of  over-feed- 
"  ing,  when  the  animal  will  often  appear  dull  and  feverish  ;  but 
"  when  the  surfeiting  is  attended  by  loss  of  appetite,  it  can  gen- 
*'  erally  be  cured  by  withholding  food  at  first,  and  then  feeding 
"  but  slightly  till  the  system  is  renovated  by  dieting," 

:)c  *  *  *  +  *  * 

"  The  Hoove,  or  Hove,  is  brouiiht  on  by  a  derang-ement  cf 
*'  the  digestive  organs,  occasioned  by  over-feeding  on  (2;reen  and 
"  luxuriant  clover,  or  other  luxuriant  food.  It  is  simply  the  dis- 
"  tcntion  of  the  first  stomach  by  carbonic  acid  gas.  In  later  stages, 
"  after  fermentation  of  the  contents  of  the  stomach  has  com- 
"  menced,  hydrogen  gas  is  also  found.  The  green  food  being 
"  gathered  very  greedily  after  the  animal  has  been  kept  on  dry  and 
"  perhaps  unpalatable  hay,  is  not  sent  forward  so  rapidly  as  it  is 
"  received,  and  remains  to  overload  and  clog  tl  e  ston.ach,  till  this 
"organ  ceases  or  loses  the  power  to  act  upon  it.  Here  it  becomes 
"  moist  and   heated,  begins  to  ferment,  and  produces  a  gas  which 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT   OF   DOMESTIC   ANIMALS.     421 

"  distends  the  paunch  of  the  animal,  which  often  swells  up  enar- 
"  mously.  The  cow  is  in  great  pain,  breathing  with  difficulty,  as 
"  if  nearly  suffocating.  Then  the  body  grows  cold,  and,  unless 
"  relief  is  at  hand,  the  cow  dies. 

"  Prevention  is  both  cheaper  and  safer  than  cure  ;  but  if  by 
*'  neo-lect,  or  want  of  proper  precaution,  the  animal  is  found  in 
*'  this  suffering  condition,  relief  must  be  afforded  as  soon  as  possi- 
"  ble,  or  tiie  result  will  be  fatal. 

"  A  hollow  flexible  tube,  introduced  into  the  gullet,  will  some- 
"  times  afford  a  temporary  relief  till  other  means  can  be  had,  by 
'^  allowing  a  part  of  the  gas  to  escape  ;  but  the  cause  is  not 
«' removed  either  by  this  means  or  by  puncturing  the  paunch, 
"  which  is  often  dangerous." 

*  *  *  *  *  *  *         • 

"  If  the  case  has  assumed  an  alarming  character,  the  flexible 
*'  tube,  or  probang,  may  be  introduced,  and  afterward  take  three 
"  drams  either  of  the  chloride  of  lime  or  the  chloride  of  soda, 
*'  dissolve  in  a  pint  of  water,  and  pour  it  down  the  throat.  Lime- 
"  water,  potash,  and  sulphuric  ether,  are  often  used  with  effect. 

*^  In  desperate  cases  it  may  be  found  necessary  to  make  an  in- 
"  cision  through  the  paunch  ;  but  the  chloride  of  lime  will,  in  most 
"  cases,  give  relief  at  once,  by  neutralizing  the  gas. 

"  Choking  is  often  produced  by  feeding  on  roots,  particularly 
"round  and  uncut  roots,  like  the  potato.  The  animal  slavers  at 
"the  mouth,  tries  to  raise  the  obstruction  from  the  throat,  often 
"  groans,  and  appears  to  be  in  great  pain.  Then  the  belly  begins 
"to  swell,  from  the  amount  of  gases  in  the  paunch. 

"  The  obstruction,  if  not  too  large,  can  sometimes  be  thrust 
*'  forward  by  introducing  a  flexible  rod,  or  tube,  into  the  throat. 
"  This  method,  if  adopted,  should  be  attended  with  great  care 
<'  and  patience,  or  the  tender  parts  will  be  injured.  If  the  ob- 
"  struction  is  low  down,  and  a  tube  is  to  be  inserted,  a  pint  of 
"  olive  or  linseed  oil  first  turned  down  the  throat  will  so  lubricate 
"  the  parts  as  to  aid  the  operation,  and  the  power  applied  must  be 
"  steady.  If  the  gullet  is  torn  by  the  carelessness  of  the  operator, 
"  or  the  roughness  of  the  instrument,  a  rupture  generally  results 


422  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

*'in  serious  consequences,  A  hollow  tube  is  best,  and  if  the  ob- 
*' ject  is  passed  on  into  the  paunch,  the  tube  should  remain  a  short 
*'  time,  to  permit  the  gas  to  escape.  In  case  the  animal  is  very 
*'  badly  swelled,  the  dose  of  chloride  of  lime,  or  ammonia,  should 
*'  be  given,  as  for  the  hoove,  after  the  obstruction  is  removed. 

*'  Care  should  be  taken,  after  the  obstruction  is  removed,  to 
*'  allow  no  solid  food  for  some  days." 

Foul  in  the  Foot^  Red-Water^  Hoose^  Inflammation  of  the  Glands^ 
Inflammation  of  the  Liings^  Diarrhea^  Dysentery^  Mange^  Lice^ 
Warbles^  Loss  of  Cud^  Constipation^  and  Diseases  of  Calves^  are 
treated  at  length  in  Mr.  Flint's  work. 

Abortion^  which  seems  to  assume  almost  the  character  of  a  con- 
tagious disease  in  many  dairy  districts,  has  thus  far  baffled  every 
attempt,  either  to  detect  its  cause,  or  prevent  its  recurrence  ;  but 
it  is  to  be  hoped  that  Dr.  Dalton's  Commission  of  the  New  York 
State  Agricultural  Society  will  be  able,  as  the  result  of  their  labors, 
to  throw  some  light  on  the  question. 

Happily  it  is  not  necessary  in  an  American  work  to  discuss  the 
dreaded  question  of  the  Rinderpest,  which  has,  within  the  past  few 
years,  decimated  the  herds  of  Europe.  It  seems  to  have  been 
finally  removed  from  all  of  those  countries  into  which  its  appear- 
ance introduced  so  much  suffering  ;  and  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  it 
\vill  be  many  years  before  even  so  slight  danger  of  the  infection 
of  American  cattle  as  we  have  just  passed  will  recur. 

The  Texas  cattle  disease,  which  has  recently  shown  itself 
in  American  herds,  docs  not  promise,  under  the  vigorous  treat- 
ment that  it  has  received,  to  become  a  nationally  serious  question. 
But  it  behooves  all  farmers  to  attend  carefully  to  the  facts  with 
which  its  development  is  attended,  and  to  join  unflinchingly  in 
any  attempt  to  prevent  its  extension,  wherever  it  gets  a  foothold. 

SHEEP. 

On  the  subject  of  the  diseases  of  sheep.  Dr.  Henry  S.  Ran- 
dall,* the  most  voluminous  and  the  most  practical  American 
writer  upon  sheep-raising,  wool-growing,  etc.,  savs, — 

*  The  Practical  Shepherd.     D.  D.  T.  Moore.     Rochester,  N.  Y.,  1864. 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT   OF   DOMESTIC   ANIMALS.    423 

*'  Many  of  the  diseases  of  sheep  which  are  described  as  com- 
"paratively  common  in  Europe,  are  unknown  in  the  United 
"  States  ;  and  this  remark  applies  particularly  to  those  which  have 
''proved  most  destructive  in  the  former. 

"  I  have  owned  sheep  the  entire  period  of  my  life, — a  little  over 
"  half  a  century, — my  flock  numbering  at  alternating  periods  from 
"  hundreds  to  thousands.  I  have  for  considerably  more  than  half 
"of  this  period  been  constantly  concerned  in  their  practical  man- 
"  agement,  and  a  deeply  interested  observer  of  them.  For  more 
"  than  twenty  years  I  have  been  engaged  in  a  constant  and  exten- 
"sive  correspondence  in  respect  to  sheep  and  their  diseases,  with 
"  flock-masters  in  various  portions  of  the  United  States,  and  have 
"  been  in  the  frequent  habit  of  inspecting  flocks  of  every  size  and 
"  description,  and  I  never  yet  have  witnessed  or  .had  satisfactory 
"  proof  brought  home  to  me  of  the  existence  of  a  single  case  of 
"  hydatid,  water  on  the  brain,  palsy,  rot,  small-pox,  malignant  in- 
"  flammatory  fever,  {^La  Maladle  de  Sologne^  blain  or  inflammation 
"  of  the  cellular  tissue  about  the  tongue,  enteritis  or  inflammation 
"  of  the  coats  of  the  intestines,  acute  dropsy  or  red-water,  acute 
"  inflammation  of  the  lungs,  or  of  a  whole  host  of  other  formidable 
"  maladies  described  by  every  European  writer  on  the  diseases  of 
"  sheep.  I  do  not  aver  that  they  never  occur  in  the  United  States, 
"but  the  above  facts  would  seem  to  show  their  occurrence  must 
"at  least  be  very  rare,  or  confined  to  localities  where  they  are  not 
"  recognized. 

"To  correct  or  confirm  my  own  impressions  on  this  subject, 
"  I  addressed  letters  a  few  months  since,  to  a  large  number  of 
"highly  intelligent  and  experienced  flock-masters  residing  in 
"  various  States,  and  in  situations  differing  widely  in  respect  to 
"climate,  soil,  elevation,  etc.;  asking  them  what  diseases  sheep 
"  were  subject  to  in  their  respective  regions,  and  what  remedies 
"  were  most  successfully  employed  for  their  cure.  The  spirit 
"and  substance  of  nearly  all  the  replies  are  contained  in  the  fol- 
"  lowing  extract  from  a  letter  of  my  off^-hand  friend,  Mr.  Theodore 
"  C.  Peters,  of  Darien,  New  York  : — 

" '  You  ask   me  for  our  sheep  diseases  and  for  the  remedies. 


424  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"  After  years  of  experience  I  discarded  all  medicines,  except  those 
"  to  cure  hoof-rot  and  scab  ;  and  I  finallv  cured  those  diseases 
"  cheaper  bv  selling  the  sheep.  An  ounce  of  prevention  is  worth 
*' a  pound  of  cure.  If  sheep  are  well  kept,  summer  and  winter, 
"  not  over-crowded  in  pastures,  and  kept  under  dry  and  wcll-ven- 
"  tilated  covers  in  winter,  and  housed  when  the  cold  fall  rains 
"  come  on,  there  will  be  no  necessity  for  remedies  of  anv  kind. 
*'  If  not  so  handled,  all  the  remedies  in  the  world  won't  help  them, 
"and  the  sooner  a  careless,  shiftless  man  loses  his  sheep,  the 
*'  better.  They  are  out  of  their  misery  and  are  not  spreading 
**  contagious  diseases  amono;  the  neiijhborino;  flocks.' 

*'  When  to  the  two  maladies  above  named,  (hoof-rot  and  scab,) 
"are  added  a  very  fatal  but  infrequent  one  in  the  spring,  ordinarily 
*'  termed  grub-in-the-head,  catarrh  or  cold,  colic,  parturient  fever, 
"  (the  last  quite  rare  and  mostly  confined  to  English  sheep,)  and 
'*  the  few  minor  diseases  of  sheep  or  lambs — we  ha\'e  almost  the 
"  entire  list  with  which  tlie  American  sheep-farmer  is  familiar. 
"  All  the  diseases  named  do  not,  in  my  opinion,  cut  off  annually 
"  two  per  cent,  of  well-fed  and  reallv  well-managed  grown  sheep  ! 
"  Nothing  is  more  common  than  for  years  to  pass  by  in  the  small 
"  flocks  of  our  careful  breeders,  with  scarcely  a  solitary  instance 
*'  of  disease  in  them.  I  ha\c  not  space  to  offer  any  conjectures 
"as  to  the  causes  of  an  immunity  from  disease  so  remarkable  in 
"comparison  with  the  condition  of  England,  France,  and  Ger- 
**  many,  in  the  same  particular. 

"  Low  Type  of  American  Sheep  Diseases. — A  discrim- 
"inating  English  veterinary  writer,  Mr.  Spooner,  has  remarked 
"  that  owing  to  its  greatly  weaker  muscular  and  vascular  structure, 
*' the  diseases  of  the  sheep  are  much  less  likely  to  take  an  inflam- 
'*  matory  t\  pe  than  those  of  the  horse,  (and,  he  might  ha\c  added, 
"  the  ox,)  and  that  the  character  of  its  maladies  is  generally  that  of 
"  debility.  Mr.  Spooner  wrote  with  his  eye  on  the  mutton  sheep 
"of  England — constantly  forced  forward  by  the  most  nutritious 
'*  food,  in  order  to  attain  early  maturity  and  excessive  fatness. 
"  Still  more  strongly  then  do  his  remarks  apply  to  the  ordinarily 
*' fed  wool-producing   sheep  of  the    United    States.     I   long  ago 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT    OF    DOMESTIC   ANIMALS.     425 

*  remarked  that  the  depletory  treatment  by  bleeding  and  cathartics, 
'  resorted  to  in  so  many  of  the  diseases  of  sheep  in  England,  is 
'  inapplicable  and  dangerous  here.  The  American  sheop,  which 
'  has  been  kept  in  the  common  way,  sinks  from  the  outset,  or 
'  after  a  mere  transient  flash  of  inflammatory  action  ;  and  in  any 
'stage  of  its  maladies  active  depletion  is  likely  to  lead  to  fatal 
'■  prostration. 

"  It  is  not  purposed  here  to  enter  upon  any  explanation  of  the 
'  anatomy  of  the  sheep,  further  than  is  necessary  to  give  a  general 
'■  view  of  the  principal  internal  structures  which  determine  the 
'form,  discharge  some  of  the  principal  animal  functions,  and 
'become  the  seats  or  subjects  of  disease.  And  in  treating  of 
'  maladies,  I  shall  aim  to  adapt  both  the  language  and  the 
'prescriptions  to  the  degree  of  knowledge  already  possessed 
'  on  the  subject  by  ordinary  practical  men,  instead  of  learned 
'  veterinarians." 

Dr.    Randall's    list    of    troublesome   diseases    is,   therefore,  as 
follows  :  — 

Hoof-rot,  Scab, 

Grub-in-the-head,  Catarrh,  and 

Colic,  Parturient  Fever. 

Hoof-rot  is  thus  described  : — 

"  The  hornv  covering  of  the  sheep's  foot  extends  up,  gradually 
thinning  out,  some  way  between  the  toes  or  division  of  the 
hoof — and  above  these  horny  walls  the  cleft  is  lined  with  skin. 
Where  the  points  of  the  toes  are  spread  apart,  this  skin  is  shown 
in  front  covered  with  soft,  short  hair.  The  heels  can  be  sep- 
arated only  to  a  little  distance,  and  the  skin  that  is  in  the  cleft 
above  them  is  naked.  In  a  healthy  foot  it  is  as  firm,  sound, 
smooth,  and  drv,  as  the  skin  between  a  man's  fingers,  which, 
indeed,  it  not  a  little  resembles^  on  a  mere  superficial  inspection. 
It  is  equally  destitute  of  any  appearance  of  redness,  or  of  fever- 
ish heat. 

"  The  first  symptom  of  hoof-rot,  uniformly,  in  my  experience, 
is  a  disappearance  of  this  smooth,  dry,  colorless  condition  of  the 
naked  skin  at  the  top  of  the  cleft  over  the  heels,  and  of  its  cool- 


426  HAXDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"  ness.  It  is  a  little  moist,  a  little  red,  and  the  skin  has  a  slightly 
"  chafed  or  eroded  appearance — sometimes  being  a  very  little 
''corrugated,  as  if  the  parts  had  been  subjected  to  the  action  of 
"moisture.  And,  on  placing  the  fingers  over  the  heels,  it  will  be 
"found  that  the  natural  coolness  of  the  parts  has  given  place  to  a 
''degree  of  heat.  The  inflammation  thenceforth  increases  prettv 
"rapidly.  The  part  first  attacked  becomes  sore.  The  moisture 
"  — the  ichorous  discharge — is  increased.  A  raw  ulcer  of  some 
"  extent  is  soon  established.  It  is  extended  down  to  the  upper 
"portion  of  the  inner  walls  of  the  hoof,  giying  them  a  whitened 
"  and  ulcerous  appearance.  Those  thin  walls  become  disorgan- 
"  ized,  and  the  ulceration  penetrates  between  the  fleshy  sole  and 
"  the  bottom  of  the  hoof.  On  applying  some  force,  or  on 
"shaving  away  the  horn,  it  will  be  found  that  the  connection 
"between  the  horny  and  fleshy  sole  is  severed,  perliaps  half-way 
"  from  the  heel  to  the  toe,  and  half-way  from  the  inner  to  the 
"  outer  wall  of  the  hoof.  The  hoof  is  thickened  with  great 
"rapidity  at  the  heel  by  an  unnatural  deposition  of  horn.  The 
"  crack  or  cavity  between  it  and  the  fleshy  sole  very  soon  exudes 
"a  highly  fetid  matter,  which  begins  to  have  a  purulent  appear- 
"ance.  The  extent  of  the  separation  increases  by  the  disorgani- 
"zation  of  the  surrounding  structures  -,  the  ulceration  penetrates 
"  throughout  the  entire  extent  of  the  sole  ;  it  begins  to  form 
"sinuses  in  the  body  of  the  fleshy  sole;  the  purulent  discharge 
"  becomes  more  profuse  ;  the  horny  sole  is  gradually  disorganized, 
"and  finally  the  outer  walls  and  points  of  the  toes  alone  remain. 
"  The  fleshy  sole  is  now  a  black,  swollen  mass  of  corruption,  of 
"the  texture  of  a  sponge  saturated  with  bloody  pus,  and  every 
"cavity  is  filled  with  crawling,  squirming  mag'i;ots.  The  horny 
"toe  disappears  ;  the  thin,  shortened  side-walls  merely  adhere  at 
"  the  coronet  ;  they  yield  to  the'  disorganization  ;  and  nothing  is 
"left  but  a  shapeless  mass  of  spongy  ulcer  and  ma'^rrots.  At- 
"  tempts  to  cure  this  disease,  the  state  of  the  weather,  and  other 
"incidental  circumstances,  cause  some  variations  from  the  above 
"  line  of  symptoms.  When  the  first  attack  occurs  in  hot  weather, 
"  the    progress  of   the   malady  is    much  more  rapid  and   violent. 


MEDICAL   TREATMEXT   OF   DOMESTIC   AXIMALS.     427 

"  The  fly  sometimes  deposits  its  eggs  in  the  ulcer,  and  maggots 
"  appear  almost  before — sometimes  actually  before — there  are  any 
"  cavities  formed,  into  which  they  can  penetrate.  The  early  ap- 
"  pearance  of  maggots  greatly  accelerates  the  process  of  disorgani- 
"  zation  in  the  structures, 

"  The  forefeet  are  usually  first  attacked,  sometimes  both  of 
*' them  simultaneously,  but  more  generally  only  one  of  them. 
"  The  animal  at  first  manifests  but  little  constitutional  disturb- 
"  ance.  It  eats  as  is  its  wont.  When  the  disease  has  partly  run 
"  its  course  in  one  foot,  the  other  forefoot  is  likely  to  be  attacked, 
"  and  presently  the  hind  ones.  When  a  foot  becomes  considera- 
"  bly  disorganized,  it  is  held  up  by  the  animal.  When  another 
''  one  reaches  the  same  state,  the  miserable  sufferer  seeks  its  food 
*'  on  its  knees  ;  and  if  forced  to  rise  and  walk,  its  strange,  hob- 
"  bling  gait  betrays  the  intense  agony  it  endures  on  bringing  its 
"  ulcerated  feet  in  contact  with  the  ground.  There  is  a  bare  spot 
"  on  the  under  side  of  the  brisket,  of  the  size  of  the  palm  of  a 
"  man's  hand,  but  perhaps  a  little  longer,  which  looks  red  and 
'■'  inflamed.  There  is  a  degree  of  general  fever,  and  the  appetite 
"  is  dull.  The  animal  rapidly  loses  condition,  but  retains  consid- 
"  erable  strength.  Nowhere  else  do  sheep  seem  to  me  to  exhibit 
"  such  tenacity  of  life.  After  the  disappearance  of  the  bottom 
*'  of  the  hoof,  the  maggot  speedily  closes  the  scene.  Where  the 
"  rotten  foot  is  brought  in  contact  with  the  side  in  lying  down, 
"  the  filthy,  ulcerous  matter  adheres  to  and  saturates  the  short 
"  wool  of  the  shorn  sheep  ;  and  maggots  also  are  either  carried 
"  there  by  the  foot,  or  they  are  speedily  generated  by  the  fly.  A 
"  black  crust  soon  forms  and  raises  a  little  higher  round  the  spot. 
*'  It  is  the  decomposition  of  the  surrounding  structures, — wool, 
"  skin,  and  muscle, — and  innumerable  maggots  are  at  work  below, 
"  burrowing  into  the  living  tissues,  and  eating  up  the  miserable 
''animal  alive.  The  black,  festering  mass  rapidly  extends,  and 
"  the  ca\ities  of  the  body  will  soon  be  penetrated,  if  the  poor 
"  sufferer  is  not  sooner  relieved  of  its  tortures  by  death. 

"  The  offensive  odor  of  the  ulcerated  feet,  almost  from  the 
"  beginning  of  the  disease,  is  so  peculiar  that  it  is  strictly  pathog- 


428  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

**  nomonic.  I  have  always  believed  that  I  could,  hv  the  sense  of 
*■'■  smell  alone,  in  the  most  absolute  darkness,  decide  on  the  pres- 
**  ence  of  hoof-rot  with  unerring  certainty.  And  I  had  about  as 
'■*■  lief  trust  my  fingers  as  my  eves  to  establish  the  same  point, 
*■*■  from  the  hour  of  the  first  attack,  if  no  other  disease  of  the  foot 
*■'•  is  present.  But  the  heat  which  invarianly  marks  the  earliest 
*'  presence  of  hoof-rot,  migh.t  arise  from  any  other  cause  which 
"produced  a  local  inflammation  of  the  same  parts. 

"  When  the  malady  has  been  well  kept  under  during  the  first 
"summer  of  its  attack,  but  not  entirely  eradicated,  it  will  almost 
*' or  entirely  disappear  as  cold  weather  approaches,  and  not  mani- 
*'  fest  itself  again  until  the  v\aim  weather  of  the  succeeding  sum- 
*'  mer.  It  then  assumes  a  mitigated  form  ;  the  sheep  are  not 
'■*■  rapidly  and  simultaneously  attacked  ;  there  seems  to  be  less 
*'  inflammatory  action  in  the  diseased  parts,  and  less  constitutional 
"  disturbance  ;  and  the  course  of  the  disease  is  less  malignant, 
*■''  more  tardy,  and  it  more  rcadih'  yields  to  treatment.  If  well 
"kept  under  the  second  summer,  it  is  still  milder  the  third.  A 
*' sheep  will  occasionally  be  seen  to  limp,  but  its  condition  will 
"  scarcely  be  afi'ectcd,  and  dangerous  symptoms  will  rarely  super- 
*'  vene.  One  or  two  applications  of  remedies  made  during  the 
'*  summer  will  now  suffice  to  keep  the  disease  under,  and  a  little 
"vigor  in  the  treatment  will  entirely  extinguish  it. 

"  With  all  its  fearful  array  of  s\  mptoms,  can  the  hoof-rot  be 
"  cured  in  its  first  attack  on  a  flock  ?  The  worst  case  can  be 
"  promptly  cured,  as  I  know  by  repeated  experiments.  Take  a 
*'  single  sheep,  put  it  by  itself,  and  administer  the  remedies  daily, 
"  after  the  English  fashion,  or  as  I  shall  presently  prescribe,  and 
"  there  is  not  an  ovine  disease  which  more  surely  yields  to  treat- 
"  ment.  But,  as  already  remarked,  in  this  country  where  sheep 
'*  are  so  cheap  and  labor  in  the  summer  months  so  dear,  it  would 
*' be  out  of  the  question  for  an  extensive  flock-master  to  attempt 
*'  to  keep  each  sheep  by  itself,  or  to  make  a  daily  application  of 
"remedies.  There  is  not  a  flock-master  within  my  knowledge 
*'  who  has  ever  pretended  to  apply  his  remedies  oftener  than  once 
"  a  week,  or  regularly  as  often  as  that,  and  not  one  in  ten  makes 


MEDICAL   TREATMEXT   OF   DOMESTIC   ANIMALS.     429 

"any  separation  between  the  diseased  and  healthy  sheep  of  a  flock 
"  into  which  the  malady  has  been  once  introduced.  The  conse- 
"quence  necessarily  is,  that  though  a  cure  is  effected  of  the  sheep 
"  tlien  diseased,  it  has  infected  or  inoculated  other?,  and  these  in 
*'  turn  scatter  the  contagion  before  they  are  cured.  There  is  not 
"  a  particle  of  doubt,  nay,  I  know,  by  repeated  observation,  that 
"a  sheep  once  entirely  cured  may  again  contract  the  disease,  and 
*'  thus  the  malady  perform  a  perpetual  circuit  in  the  flock.  For- 
"  tunately,  however,  the  susceptibility  to  contract  the  disease 
"  diminishes,  according  to  my  observation,  with  every  succeeding 
"attack;  and  fortunately  also,  as  already  stated,  succeeding: 
*' attacks,  other  things  being  equal,  become  less  and  less  virulent." 

In  order  to  reach  the  seat  of  the  disease,  it  is  necessary  that 
the  horn  of  the  hoof  be  entirely  removed  over  those  parts  where 
the  difficulty  is  located.  This  work  is  done  by  the  aid  of  sharp, 
thin  knives  and  strong  toe-nippers,  which,  with  the  manner  of 
using  them,  are  described  in  Dr.  Randall's  work,  and  he  con- 
tinues:— 

"  Jnd  on  the  eff'ectual performance  of  th'is^  all  else  depends.  If  the 
"  disease  is  in  the  first  stage — /.  ^.,  if  there  is  merely  an  erosion 
"and  ulceration  of  the  cuticle  and  flesh  in  the  cleft  above  the 
"walls  of  the  hoof,  no  paring  is  necessary.  But  if  ulceration  has 
"established  itself  between  the  hoof  and  the  fleshy  sole,  the  ul- 
*'  cerated  parts,  be  they  more  or  less  extensive,  must  be  entirely  de- 
*'  nuded  of  their  horny  coverings  cost  tvhat  it  may  ofti?ne  and  care.  It 
''  is  better  not  to  wound  the  sole  so  as  to  cause  it  to  bleed  freely,  as 
"the  running  blood  will  wash  off  the  subsequent  application  ;  but 
"  no  fear  of  wounding  the  sole  must  prevent  a  full  compliance 
"  with  the  rule  above  laid  down.  At  worst,  the  blood  can  soon 
"be  stanched,  however  freely  it  flows,  by  a  few  touches  of  a 
*'  caustic — say  butter  of  antimony. 

"  If  the  foot  is  in  the  third  stage, — a  mass  of  rottenness  and 
"  filled  with  maggots, — the  maggots  should  first  be  killed  by  spirits 
"of  turpentine,  or  a  solution  of  corrosive  sublimate,  or  other 
"  equally  efficient  application.  It  can  be  most  conveniently  used 
"  from  a  bottle  having  a  quill   through   the  cork.      By  continuing 


430  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"  to  remove  the  dead  maggots  with  a  stick,  and  to  expose  and  kill 
*' the  deeper-lodged  ones,  all  can  be  extirpated.  Every  particle 
*' of  loose  horn  should  then  be  removed,  though  it  take  the  entire 
**  hoof, — and  it  frequently  does  take  the  entire  hoof  at  an  ad- 
*■*■  vanced  stage  of  the  disease.  The  foot  should  be  cleansed,  if 
"  necessary,  with  a  solution  of  chloride  of  lime,  in  the  proportion 
"of  a  pound  of  the  chloride  to  a  gallon  of  water.  If  this  is  not 
"  at  hand,  plunging  the  foot  repeatedly  in  water,  just  short  of 
''scalding  hot,  will  answer  the  purpose." 

Quite  a  number  of  remedies  are  given  as  being,  or  having  been, 
in  successful  operation  in  different  parts  of  this  country  and  in 
Europe. 

"  The  most  common  and  popular  remedy  now  used  in  Central 

"  New  York  is  :    i  lb.  blue  vitriol  ;   ^  lb.  (with  some,  h  lb.)  ver- 

"  digris  ;    I    pint  of  linseed  oil  ;    I  quart  of  tar.      The  vitriol  and 

"  verdigris  are  pulverized  \ery  fine,  and  many  persons,  before  add- 

"  ing  the  tar,  grind  the  mixture  through  a  paint-mill.      Some  use 

"  a  decoction  of  tobacco  boiled  until  thick,   in  the  place  of  oil." 
******* 

"  Any  of  these  remedies,  and  fifty  more  that  might  be  com- 
'  pounded,  simply  by  combining  caustics,  stimulants,  etc.,  in 
'  different  forms  and  proportions,  will  prove  sufficient  for  the  ex- 
'  tirpation  of  hoof-rot,  with  proper  preparatory  and  subsequent 
'  treatment.  On  these  last,  beyond  all  question,  principally  de- 
'  pends  the  comparative  success  of  the  applications. 

"  First.  No  external  remedy  can  succeed  in  this  malady  unless 
'it  comes  in  contact  with  all  the  diseased  parts  of  the  foot  ;  for  if 
'  such  part,  however  small,  is  unreached,  the  unhealthy  and  ul- 
'  cerous  action  is  perpetuated  in  it,  and  it  gradually  spreads  over 
'and  again  involves  the  surrounding  tissues.  Therefore  every 
'  portion  of  the  diseased  flesh  must  be  denuded  of  horn,  filth, 
'  dead  tissue,  pus,  and  every  other  substance  which  can  prevent 
'  the  application  from  actually  touching  it,  and  producing  its 
'  characteristic  effects  on  it. 

^'■Second.  The  application  must  be  kept  in  contact  with  the  dis- 
'  eased  surfaces  long  enough  to  exert  its  proper  remedial  influence. 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT    OF   DOMESTIC   Al>riMALS.    431 

*'  If  removed,  by  any  means,  before  this  is  accomplished,  it  must 
"  necessarily  proporlionably  fail   in  its  effects. 

"  The  preparation  of  the  foot,  then,  requires  no  mean  skill. 
"  The  tools  must  be  sharp,  the  movements  of  the  operator  careful 
*'  and  deliberate.  As  he  shaves  down  near  the  quick,  he  must 
"  cut  thinner  and  thinner,  and  with  more  and  more  care,  or  else 
'•'•  he  will  either  fail  to  remove  the  horn  exactly  far  enough,  or  he 
"  will  cut  into  the  fleshy  sole  and  cause  a  rapid  flow  of  blood.  I 
"  have  already  remarked  that  the  blood  can  be  stanched  by  caus- 
*'  tics — but  they  coagulate  it  on  the  surface  in  a  mass  which 
"  requires  removal  before  the  application  of  remedies,  and  in  the 
*'  process  of  its  removal  the  blood  is  very  frequently  set  flowing 
"  again,  and  this  sometimes  several  times  follows  the  application 
"  of  the  caustic." 

"  The  separation  of  the  sheep,  poulticing,  inclosing  of  the  foot, 
etc.,  I  believe  to  be  unnecessary — but  the  feet  must  be  well 
prepared,  and  the  sheep  must  be  kept  out  of  the  rain,  or  grass 
wetted  by  rain  or  dew,  for  twenty-four  or  thirtv-six  hours  after- 
ward— the  longer  the  better.  IPlthout  this  the  ?nost  careful  prepa- 
ration of  the  foot  and  the  best  remedies  cannot  be  7nade  effectual. 
*  *  *  *  The  best  place  to  put  sheep  after  applying 
remedies  to  their  feet,  is  on  the  naked  floors  of  stables — scatter- 
ing them  over  as  much  surface  as  practicable,  so  that  there 
shall  be  as  little  accumulation  of  manure  as  possible  under  foot. 
Straw,  especially  if  fresh  littered  down,  absorbs  or  rubs  off  the 
moist  Sv'bstances  which  have  been  applied  to  their  feet.  The 
bottoms  of  the  feet  are  soon  thus  cleaned  off.  A  boy  should  go 
round  with  a  shovel,  until  night,  taking  up  the  dung  as  fast  as 
dropped.  The  sheep  should  be  kept  in  the  stables  over  the 
first  night,  and  not  let  out  the  next  day  until  the  dew  is  off  the 
grass  ;  then  they  should  be  turned  on  the  most  closely  cropped 
grass  on  the  farm.  It  well  pays  for  the  trouble  to  put  them  in 
the  stables  the  second  night  before  the  dew  falls,  and  to  keep 
them,  as  before,  until  it  is  dried  off  the  next  day. 
"  I  have  never  found  that  for  moderate  cases  of  hoof-rot — the 
28 


432  HAXDY-BOOK     OF     HUSBANDRY. 

"  worst  ones  which  are  allowed  to  occur  in  well-manageu  flocks — 
"that  there  is,  in  reality,  any  possible  beneficial  addition  to  mere 
"  blue  vitriol,  as  a  remedy,  if  it  is  applied  in  the  most  eftcctive 
"  way.  Twice  I  have  cured  a  diseased  Jiock  bv  one  application 
"  of  it, — and  I  never  heard  of  it  being  done  in  anv  other  way,  or, 
"  indeed,  on  anv  other  occasion." 

Scab  is  a  disease  of  the  skin  like  the  itch  in  the  human  race,  or 
the  mange  in  horses.  It  is  caused  bv  a  minute  insect  known  to 
entomologists  as  the  Acarus.  Dr.  Randall  does  not  think  that  the 
disease  originates  spontaneously  in  the  Uiiited  States,  and  its 
prevalence  here  is  confined  chiefly  to  long-wooled  sheep. 

"  It  spreads  from  individual  to  individual,  and  from  flock  to 
*'  flock,  not  only  by  means  of  direct  contact,  but  by  the  acari  left 
*'  on  posts,  stones,  and  other  substances  against  which  diseased  sheep 
*'  have  rubbed  themselves.  Healthy  sheep  are  therefore  liable  to 
"  contract  the  malady  if  turned  on  pastures  previously  occupied 
*'  by  scabby  sheep,  though  some  considerable  time  may  have 
"  elapsed  since  the  departure  of  the  latter. 

*'  The  sheep  laboring  under  the  scab  is  exceedingly  restless.  It 
"rubs  itself  with  violence  against  trees,  stones,  fences,  etc.  It 
"  scratches  itself  with  its  feet,  and  bites  its  sores,  and  tears  ofi^  its 
"wool  with  its  teeth.  As  the  pustules  are  broken,  their  matter 
"escapes  and  forms  scabs  covering  red,  inflamed  sores.  The 
*'  sores  constantly  extend,  increasing  the  misery  of  the  tortured 
"animal.      If  unrelieved,  it  pines  away  and  soon  perishes." 

Having  detected  the  appearance  of  scab  in  a  newly  purchased 
flock  of  sheep.  Dr.  Randall  adopted  the  following  treatment : — 

"  The  sheep  had  been  shorn,  and  their  backs  were  covered  with 
"  scabs  and  sores.  They  evidently  had  the  scab.  I  had  a  large 
*'  potash  kettle  sunk  partly  in  the  ground  as  an  extempore  vat, 
"  and  an  unweighed  quantity  of  tobacco  put  to  boiling  in  several 
*'  other  kettles.  The  only  care  was  to  have  enough  of  the  decoc- 
"  tion,  as  it  was  rapidly  wasted,  and  to  have  it  strong  enough.  A 
"  little  spirits  of  turpentine  was  occasionally  thrown  on  the  decoc- 
"  tion,  say,  to  every  third  or  fourth  sheep  dipped.  It  was  neces- 
*'  sary  to  use  it  sparingly,  as,  not  mixing  with  the  fluid  and  floating 


MEDICAL    TREATMENT    OF    DOMESTIC   ANIMALS.    433 

"  on  the  surface,  too  much  of  it  otherwise  came  in  contact  with 
"  the  sheep.  Not  attending  to  this  at  first,  two  or  three  of  the 
'■'■  sheep  were  thrown  into  great  agony,  and  appeared  to  be  on  the 
"  point  of  dying.  I  had  each  sheep  cajght  and  its  scabs  scoured 
"  off  bv  two  men,  who  rubbed  them  with  stiff  shoe-brushes  dipped 
"  in  a  suds  of  tobacco-water  and  soft  soap.  The  two  men  then 
•"  dipped  the  sheep  all  over  in  the  large  kettle  of  tobacco-water, 
'"  rubbing  and  kneading  the  sore  spots  with  their  hands  while  im- 
"  mersed  in  the  fluid.  The  decoction  was  so  strong  that  many  of 
"  the  sheep  appeared  to  be  sickened  either  by  immersion  or  by  its 
"  fumes  ;  and  one  of  the  men  who  dipped,  though  a  tobacco- 
"  chewer,  vomited,  and  became  so  sick  that  his  place  had  to  be 
"  supplied  by  another.  The  effect  on  the  sheep  was  almost  magi- 
"  cal.  The  sores  rapidly  healed,  the  sheep  gained  in  condition, 
"  the  new  wool  immediately  started,  and  I  never  had  a  more  per- 
"  fectly  healthy  flock  on  my  farm." 

Randall  also  gives  several  other  methods  of  treatment  which  are 
in  vogue  in  England,  some  of  which  are  better  adapted  than  is  the 
tobacco-water  for  use  with  sheep  carrying  long  fleeces. 

The  Grub-in-the-head  is  the  grub  of  the  gadfly  of  the  sheep, 
[CEstrus  ovis.)  The  egg  is  deposited  within  the  nostrils  of  the 
sheep,  where  it  is  immediately  hatched  by  the  warmth  and  moist- 
ure ;  and  the  larvae  crawl  up  the  nose  to  the  sinuses,  where  they 
attach  themselves  to  the  membrane  and  remain  until  the  next 
year,  feeding  upon  the  mucus.  Randall  thinks  that  many  of  the 
ills  that  sheep  flesh  is  heir  to  are  erroneously  attributed  to  the 
effect  of  this  grub,  concerning  which  he  says  : — 

"  I  have  had  a  singularly  limited  experience  with  any  diseases 
"  which  could  reasonably  be  attributed  to  the  presence  of  these 
"  parasites,  and  therefore  do  not  feel  myself  at  all  well  qualified  to 
"judge  of  their  actual  effects  on  the  sheep.  That  want  of  expe- 
"  rience  is  a  strong  proof  of  itself  that  resulting  maladies  are  not 
"  as  frequent  by  any  means  as  is  popularly  supposed.  And  know- 
"  ing,  as  I  do,  that  other  and  wholly  dissimilar  diseases  are  habitu- 
"  ally  termed  'grub-in-the-head,'  I  can  entertain  no  doubt  that  the 
"  extent  of  the  injuries  thus  inflicted  is  enormously  exaggerated. 


434  II  ANDY -J5U0K    OF    li  U -S  B  A  N  D  U  V  . 

"  Influenced  bv  these  latter  considcratit^ns,  and  by  the  strong 
cuuincr-testimonv  of  such  really  able  veterinarians  as  Messrs. 
Clark  and  Youatt,  and  the  silence  on  the  subject  of  Mr. 
Spooner  and  some  other  modern  writers,  I  was  formerly  led 
to  doubt  whether  the  larvae  of  the  CEstrus  ovis  ever  did 
more  in  the  sheep's  head  than  effect  a  degree  of  temporary 
irritation  of  the  lining  membranes,  which  might  produce  serious 
inconvenience  when  actino;  in  concert  with  the  inflammation' 
already  established  by  catarrhal  or  other  cerebral  affections,  but 
which  never  caused  death.  Again  reminding  the  reader  that  I 
speak  from  a  very  limited  personal  knowledge  of  the  disease,  I 
feel  it  due  to  frankness  to  say  tha:  my  opinions  have  undergone 
some  change.  The  testimony  of  intelligent  men  has  satisfied 
me  that  the  irritation  and  ultimate  inflammation  of  the  mucous 
lining  of  the  head,  produced  by  the  tentacula  of  the  worm  and 
by  its  constant  feeding  on  the  secretions,  if  not  even  on  the 
substance  of  the  membrane  itself,  in  certain  stages  of  the  dis- 
ease, are  sufficient  in  some  cases  to  cause  death.  I  should  not 
expect  a  sheep  in  high  condition  and  apparent  health  to  die  sud- 
denly from  this  cause  without  previous  symptoms  of  disease,  and 
under  circumstances  resembling  those  of  apoplexy.  I  should 
not  expect  the  powerful  nervous  disturbances  of  epilepsy.  But 
if  the  sheep  began  to  fall  off  rapidly  in  condition  a  little  before 
the  opening  of  spring,  without  any  other  traceable  cause — if  it 
wandered  round  with  irrciriilar  movements,  twistintr  about  its 
head  occasionally  as  if  it  was  suffering  pain — and  especially  if 
the  mucus  discharged  from  the  nose  was  tinged  with  blood — I 
should  suspect  'grub-in-the-head,'  and  administer  remedies  or 
antidotes  on  that  hypothesis.  And,  after  the  death  of  patients, 
I  should,  as  carefully  as  practicable,  examine  not  only  the 
sinuses  of  the  head,  but  also  the  entire  nasal  cavities,  to  ascer- 
tain whether  there  were  any  traces  of  the  supposed  destructive 
action  of  the  larvae. 

"  Some  farmers  protect  their  sheep  measurably  from  the  attacks 
of  the  CEstrus  cvis^  by  plowing  a  furrow  or  two  in  different  por- 
tions of  their  pastures.      The   sheep  thrust  their  noses  into  this 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT   OF   DOMESTIC   ANIMALS.     435 

"  on  the  approach  of  the  fly.  Others  smear  their  noses  with  tar, 
"  or  cause  them  to  smear  themselves,  by  sprinkHng  their  salt  over 
"  tar.  Those  fish  oils  which  repel  the  attacks  of  flies  might  be 
''  resorted  to.  Blacklock  suggested  the  dislodgment  of  the  larvae 
"  from  the  head  by  blowing  tobacco  smoke  up  the  nostrils — as  it 
*'  is  said  to  be  effectual.  It  is  blown  from  the  tail  of  a  pipe,  the 
"  bowl  being  covered  with  cloth.  Tobacco-water  is  sometimes 
*'  injected  with  a  syringe  for  the  same  purpose.  The  last  should 
''  be  prevented  from  entering  the  throat  in  any  considerable 
"  quantity." 

"  Catarrh. — Catarrh  is  an  inflammation  of  the  mucous  mem- 
"  brane  which  lines  the  nasal  passages — and  it  sometimes  extends 
"  to  the  larynx  and  pharynx.  In  the  first  instance — where  the 
*'  lining  of  the  nasal  passages  is  alone  and  not  very  violently 
"  affected — it  is  merely  accompanied  by  an  increased  discharge  of 
*'  mucus,  and  is  rarelv  attended  with  much  danger.  In  this  form 
"  it  is  usually  termed  snuffles,  and  high-bred  English  mutton 
''  sheep,  in  this  countrv,  are  apt  to  manifest  more  or  less  of  it, 
"  after  every  sudden  change  of  weather.  When  the  inflammation 
"  extends  to  the  mucous  lining  of  the  larynx  and  pharynx,  some 
"  degree  of  fever  usually  supervenes,  accompanied  bv  cough,  and 
"some  loss  of  appetite.  At  this  point  the  English  veterinarians 
**  usually  recommend  bleeding  and  purging.  Catarrh  rarely  attacks 
*'  the  American  fine-wooled  sheep  with  sufficient  violence,  in  sum- 
"  mer,  to  require  the  exhibition  of  remedies.  I  early  found  that 
"  depletion,  in  catarrh,  in  our  severe  winter  months,  rapidly  pro- 
"  duced  that  fatal  prostration  from  which  it  is  next  to  impossible 
*' to  recover  the  sheep — entirely  impossible  without  bestowing  an 
"  amount  of  time  and  care  on  it  costing  far  more  than  the  price  of 
"  any  ordinary  sheep. 

"  The  best  course  is  to  prevent  the  disease  by  judicious  pre- 
"  cautions.  With  that  amount  of  attention  which  every  prudent 
"  flock-master  should  bestow  on  his  sheep,  the  hardy  American 
*'  merino  is  little  subject  to  it.  Good,  comfortable,  but  well- 
"  ventilated  shelters,  constantly  accessible  to  the  sheep  in  vv  iiitcr, 


436  HANDY-BOOK    OF   HUSBANDRY. 

*■*■  with  a  proper  supplv  of  food  regularly  administered,  is  usually  a 
**  sufficient  safeguard  ;  and  after  some  vears  of  experience,  during 
*'  which  I  have  tried  a  variety  of  experiments  on  this  disease,  I 
"  resort  to  no  other  remedies — in  other  words,  I  do  nothing  for 
*'  those  occasional   cases  of  ordinary  catarrh  which   arise  in  my 

"  flock  ;   and  thev  never  prove  fatal." 

******* 

"  Colic  or  Stretches. — The  cause  of  this  disease  is  generally 
**  costiveness.  The  paroxysms  recur  at  intervals.  During  the 
*'  continuance  of  them  the  sheep  stretches  itself  incessantly,  and 
"  often  twists  about  its  head  as  if  in  severe  pain.  It  lies  down 
"  and  rises  frequently.  The  termination  is  occasionally  fatal, 
"  unless  the  bowels  are  promptly  opened  by  medicine.  An  ounce 
"  of  Epsom  salts  dissolved  in  warm  water,  with  a  dram  of  ginger 
*■*■  and  a  teaspoonful  of  peppermint,  should  be  administered  to 
"  a  sheep,  and  half  as  much  to  a  lamb.  Three  very  excellent 
"  practical  shepherds  write  me — the  first,  that  '  he  gives  Epsom 
"  salts  successfully  for  stretches  ;'  the  second,  that  he  '  uses  a 
'■'■  decoction  of  thoroughwort  or  boneset — that  warm  tea  is  also 
*'  good  ;'  the  third,  that  he  '  employs  castor-oil,  and  if  the  case  is 
"  obstinate,  a  moderate  dose  of  aloes.'  Attacks  of  this  disease 
"  become  habitual  to  some  sheep.  It  can  always  be  prevented  by 
"  giving  green  feed  daily,  or  even  once  or  twice  a  week." 

Dr.  Randall  states  that  he  has  never  seen  a  case  of  parturient 
or  puerperal  fever,  and  believes  that  it  is  exclusively  confined  to 
English  sheep.  As  English  sheep  have  been  largely  introduced 
into  this  country,  the  following  statement  concerning  it,  taken 
from  the  "Jourtial  of  the  Royal  Agricultural  Society  will  be  valu- 
able : — 

"  Symptoms. — The  most  early  symptom  that  marks  the  com- 
"  menccment  of  this  disease — first  the  ewe  suddenly  leaves  her 
'*  food,  twitches  both  hind  legs  and  ears,  and  returns  again  to  her 
'*  food  ;  during  the  next  two  or  three  days  she  eats  but  little, 
"appears  dull  and  stupid;  after  this  time  there  is  a  degree  of 
"general  weakness,  loss  of  appetite  and  giddiness,  and  a  discharge 
"  of  dark  color  from  the  vagina  ;     while  the  flock  is  driven  from 


MEDICAL    TREATMENT    OF    DOMESTIC    A.  X  I  M  A  L  S  .     437 

"  fold  to  fold  the  affected  sheep  loiters  behind  and  staggers  in  her 
''  gait,  the  head  is  carried  downward,  and  the  eyelids  partly  closed. 
••'  If  parturition  takes  place  during  this  stage  of  the  disease,  and  the 
"  animal  is  kept  warm  and  carefully  nursed,  recovery  will  fre- 
"  quently  take  place  in  two  or  three  days  ;  if,  on  the  contrary,  no 
"  relief  is  afforded,  symptoms  of  a  typhoid  character  present  them- 
'*  selves  ;  the  animal  is  found  in  one  corner  of  the  fold,  the  head 
"  down,  and  extremely  uneasy,  the  body  is  frequently  struck  with 
"  the  hind  feet,  a  dark  colored  fetid  discharge  continues  to  flow 
*'  from  the  vagina,  and  there  is  great  prostration  of  strength.  A 
*'  pair  of  lambs  are  now  often  expelled  in  a  high  state  of  putrefac- 
"  tion,  and  the  ewe  down  and  unable  to  rise,  the  head  is  crouching 
*'  upon  the  ground,  and  there  is  extreme  insensibility  ;  the  skin 
"  may  be  punctured  and  the  finger  placed  under  the  eyelids 
"  without  giving  any  evidence  of  pain  ;  the  animal  now  rapidly 
"  sinks  and  dies,  often  in  three  or  four  days  from  the  commence- 
"  ment  of  the  attack.  Ewes  that  recover,  suffer  afterward  for 
*'  some  time  great  weakness,  and  many  parts  of  the  body  become 
"  denuded  of  wool. 

"  Tr£atm£}it.  —  The  ewe  immediately  noticed  ill  should  be 
"  removed  from  the  flock  to  a  warm  fold  apart  from  all  other 
"  sheep,  and  be  fed  with  oatmeal  gruel,  bruised  oats,  and  cut  hay, 
"  with  a  little  linseed  cake.  If  in  two  or  three  days  the  patient 
"  continuco  ill,  is  dull  and  weak,  a  dark  colored  fetid  discharge 
"  from  the  vagina,  and  apparently  uneasy,  an  attempt  to  remove 
"  the  lambs  should  be  made.  The  lambs  in  a  great  majority  of 
"  cases  at  this  period  are  dead,  and  their  decomposition,  (that  is, 
"giving  off  putrid  matter,)  is  a  frequent  cause  of  giddiness  and 
"stupor  in  the  ewe.  If  the  os  uteri  (the  entrance  into  the  uterus) 
"•is  not  sufficiently  dilated  to  admit  the  hand  of  the  operator,  the 
"  vaginal  cavity  and  os  uteri  should  be  smeared  every  three  hours 
"  with  the  extract  of  belladonna,  and  medicine  as  follows  given  : — 

Calomel 8.  grains 

Extract  hyoscyamns i    dram 

Oatmeal  gruel 8  ounces 

"  mix,  and  give  two  table-spoonfuls  twice  a  day. 


438  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

Epsom  salts 8  ounces 

Niter i  ounce 

Carbonate  of  soda a  ounces 

Water i  pint 

"  mix,  and  give  two  wine-glassfuls  at  the  same  time  the  former 
"  mixture  is  given.  Let  both  mixtures  be  kept  in  separate  bottles, 
"  and  well  shaken  before  given.  The  bowels  being  operated 
"  upon,  omit  both  former  prescriptions  and  give  the  following  : — 

Niter i  ounce 

Carbonate  of  soda I  ounce 

Camphor I  dram 

Water 8  ounces 

"  A  wine-glassful  to  be  given  twice  a  day. 

*•'■  Feed  the  ewe  principally  upon  gruel  and  milk,  or  linseed 
'' porridtre.  Parturition  having  taken  place,  the  uterus  should  be 
"  injected  with  a  solution  of  chloride  of  lime,  in  the  proportion 
"of  a  dram  to  a  pint  of  warm  water,  and  repeated  twice  a  day 
"  while  any  fetid  discharge  from  the  vagina  remains." 

"  Prevention. — The  most  important  feature  connected  with  our 
*'  subject  is  the  prevention  of  the  disease,  for  it  most  interests  the 
'■'•  breeder  in  a  pecuniary  point  of  view.  I  would  recommend  as 
"  most  important  during  the  last  five  or  six  weeks'  gestation,  regu- 
*'  lar  and  nutritious  feeding,  regular  exercise^  dry  and  extensive 
*'  folding.  If  turnips  be  the  article  of  food,  let  there  be  given  in 
"  addition  a  few  oats,  linseed  cake,  with  hay  and  straw  chafF;  let 
*'  a  well-sheltered  and  dry  fold  be  arranged  at  a  short  distance 
"  from  where  the  ewes  are  fed  during  the  dav,  wherein  to  lodge 
*'  for  the  night  ;  the  driving  to  and  from  these  folds  iv ill  give  exer- 
"  cise^  a  circumstance  tending  much  to  promote  health  in  the  pregnant 
"  ewe  ;  if  the  system  of  heath  or  pasture  feeding  is  practiced,  night 
"  folding  is  then  equallv  necessarv.  The  night  fold  in  common 
"  use — that  formed  bv  building  straw  and  stubble  walls,  with 
"  sheds  attached,  the  front  of  which  has  a  southern  aspect — 
*'  answers  admirably.  Further  explaining  the  comforts  of  the 
"  pregnant  ewe,  I  will  add,  in  the  words  of  the  poet, — 


MEDICAL   TREATMEXT   OF   DOMESTIC  ANIMA.LS.   439 

"  '  First  with  assiduous  care  from  winter  keep, 
Well  foddered  in  the  stalls,  thy  tender  sheep; 
Then  spread  with  straw  the  bedding  of  thy  fold. 
With  fern  berteath  to  'fend  the  bittef  cold,'" 

The  following  letter  to  Dr.  Randall  is  based  on  the  experience 
of  one  of  the  earliest  and  most  successful  breeders  of  English 
sheep  in  America  : — 

"  Thorndale,  Washington  Hollow,  N.  Y.,  April  13,  1863. 
"  Dear  Sir  : — *  *  The  puerperal  fever  has  been  known  in 
*'  this  neighborhood  since  I  first  came  here,  though  only  to  a  lim- 
"  ited  extent  during  the  last  two  seasons.  *  *  *  The  disease 
"  more  generally  affects  middle-aged  ewes,  and  ewes  producing  or 
"  carrying  twins.  It  does  not  select  those  lowest  in  flesh  ;  hence 
"  the  farmers,  as  a  class,  are  unwilling  to  believe  that  teed  can 
"  remedy  it.  It  generally  shows  itself  from  four  or  five  to  ten 
*'  days  before  lambing.  *  *  *  The  treatment  which  my  shep- 
"  herd  has  followed,  and  with  good  success, — saving  sixteen  out 
*' of  twenty  sick,  in  1859, — has  been  to  separate  the  sick  ewe  at 
*•'  once  from  the  flock  and  give  a  dose  of  two  ounces  Epsom  salts, 
*'  two  to  three  ounces  molasses,  one  dram  of  niter,  mixed  with  a 
"  pint  of  warm  linseed  gruel.  The  object  is  to  open  the  bowels, 
''  and  should  the  above  not  operate  in  eight  or  ten  hours,  it  should 
*'  be  repeated.  After  that,  the  niter  and  molasses  are  given  night 
"  and  morning  in  an  ordinary  quart  bottle  of  gruel,  until  there  is 
*'  an  abatement  of  the  fever,  when  the  niter  is  discontinued.  Fre- 
*'  quently,  in  fact,  generally,  after  they  have  been  down  three  or 
'*  four  days, — if  they  live  so  long, — the  brown  discharge  which  has 
**  been  noticed  passing  from  the  vagina,  becomes  putrid,  showing 
"  that  the  foetus  is  dead.  In  such  cases  a  small  quantity  of  bella- 
"  donna — applied  dry  on  the  end  of  the  finger — is  applied  to  the 
"  mouth  of  the  womb  every  hour  until  it  is  sufficiently  relaxed  to 
**  allow  of  the  removal  of  the  decaying  mass.  After  that  has 
"  has  been  done,  the  womb  is  thoroughly  syringed  with  warm 
"  water,  to  which  milk  is  sometimes  added.  The  ewe's  position 
"  is  made  as  comfortable  as  possible,  and  always  changed  once  or 
"  twice  a  day.     Where  the  ewe  brings  forth  her  young  alive  she 


440  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"  recovers  more  rapidly.  The  remedies  and  treatment,  as  you 
*^  will  see,  are  perfectly  simple,  and  easily  tried  by  any  flock 
'*  owner.  The  great  secret  of  success,  with  it,  as  with  a  large 
*'  majority  of  diseases,  I  believe,  is  good  nursing.  *  *  *  Since 
'■'■  mv  flock  have  received  a  small  quantitv  of  grain,  sav  half  a  pint 
*'  per  head  dailv,  before  lambing,  thev  have  been  quite  free  from 
*'  any  signs  of  that  trouble.  As  an  illustration  that  a  small  quan- 
*'  tity  of  feed  is  a  preventive,  a  flock  belonging  to  one  of  mv  friends 
"  was  divided,  upon  going  into  winter-quarters,  into  two  lots, — 
"  one  of  sixtv  old  ewes,  the  other  of  thirtv  two-year  old  ewes. 
"  The  former  received  a  very  small  quantity  of  corn  daily — the 
"  latter  only  hay.  His  loss  from  the  former  lot  was  two — from 
*'  the  latter,  fourteen  head  ;  though  the  younger  ones  generally 
*'  escaped.      *     *     * 

"  Yours  faithfully,  Sam'l  Thorne." 

SWINE. 

The  following  statement  concerning  swine,  bv  Dr.  Finlay 
Dun,  of  the  Edinburgh  Veterinary  College,  to  the  'Jouryial  of  the 
Royal  Agricultural  Society  of  England^^  advances  an  idea  that  is  not 
in  accordance  with  the  views  of  most  American  farmers.  He 
says: — 

**  Pigs,  when  carefullv  managed,  are  hardy  and  little  liable  to 
*'  disease.  Wild  breeds  in  both  the  Old  and  New  Worlds  are 
''  remarkably  healthy  ;  but  it  must  be  recollected  that  they  con- 
*'  stantly  breathe  pure  fresh  air,  have  regular  exercise,  feed  mod- 
*'  erately  on  roots  and  fruits,  and  carefully  avoid  all  kinds  of  filth  ; 
"  for  they  are  naturally  a  very  cleanly  race,  and  indulge  in  wal- 
*'  lowing  in  the  mire,  not  from  any  love  of  filth,  as  is  generally 
"  supposed,  but,  like  the  elephant,  rhinoceros,  and  other  pachy- 
*'  dermata,  for  the  purpose  of  protecting  their  skins  from  the  attacks 
*'  of  insects.  In  a  state  of  domestication,  however,  their  condition 
*'  is  usually  very  different.  Tliey  are  cooped  up  in  narrow,  damp, 
*'  and  dirty  sties,  and  constrained  to  inhale  all  kinds  of  noxious  va- 

*  Journal  of  the  Royal  Agricultural  Society  of  England,  Volume  XVI  ,  page  37. 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT   OF   DOMESTIC   AXIMALS.     441 

"  pors,  and  to  cat  coarse,  innutritious,  and  unsuitable  food.  \Ve  can- 
*■*•  not,  then,  be  surprised  that  under  such  circumstances  they  should 
"  not  only  become  the  victims  of  disease  from  which  in  their  nat- 
"  ural  state  they  are  free,  but  should  also  transmit  to  their  progeny  a 
*'  weakened  and  morbidly  predisposed  constitution.  But  we  believe 
"  that  much  of  the  hereditary  disease  of  pigs  is  due  to  another 
"  cause  than  that  just  indicated,  viz. :  breeding  in  and  in.  *  *  * 
'*  In  several  cases  which  have  come  under  our  own  observation, 
*'  it  has  induced  total  ruin  of  the  entire  stock.  At  first  it  merely 
"  rendered  the  animals  somewhat  smaller  and  finer  than  before, 
"  and  improved  rather  than  injured  their  fattening  properties. 
"  Very  soon,  however,  it  caused  a  marked  diminution  in  size  and 
"  vigor,  and  engendered  a  disposition  to  various  forms  of  scrofu- 
"■  lous  disease,  and  to  rickets,  tabes  mesenterica,  and  pulmonary 
"  consumption.  Many  of  the  boars  became  sterile,  and  the  sows 
"  barren  or  liable  to  abortion.  In  every  succeeding  litter  the  pigs 
*'  became  fewer  in  number  and  more  and  more  delicate  and  diffi- 
*'  cult  to  rear.  Many  were  born  dead,  others  without  tails,  eaj;s, 
*'  or  eyes  ;  and  all  kinds  of  monstrosities  were  frequent.  *  *  * 
"  The  occurrence  of  such  effects  should  induce  the  breeder  of 
"  swine,  and  indeed  of  all  animals,  to  practice  breeding  in  and  in 
"  with  much  caution,  to  adopt  it  only  occasionally  and  with  strong 
*'  and  healthy  animals,  and  to  recollect  that  though  it  may  im- 
*'  prove  the  symmetry  and  fattening  capabilities  of  stock,  it  does 
*'  so  at  the  sacrifice  of  their  general  vigor  and  disease-resisting 
"  powers." 

Dr.  Dun  states  with  reference  to  epilepsy,  with  which  pigs  are 
often  suddenly  attacked,  that  the  inherited  tendency  may  be  miti- 
gated by  keeping  the  animals  clean,  warm,  and  comfortable,  and 
supplied  with  a  sufficiency  of  good,  digestible,  and  somewhat  laxa- 
tive food. 

"  To  eradicate  it  the  stock  must  receive  an  infusion  of  new 
*'  blood  ;  and  this  is  especially  necessary,  as  epilepsy  in  pigs 
"  depends  in  most  cases  on  continued  breeding  in-and-in." 

There  sometimes  appears  among  pigs  an  hereditary  predisposi- 
tion to  lung  diseases,  indicated  by  a  narrow  chest,  and  a  lanky  and 


442  ]I  ANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANI'UY. 

thriftless  appearance,  their  great  liability  to  suffer  from  coughs 
being  readily  excited  by  exposure  to  cold  or  wet,  or  by  changes 
of  food. 

'*  Pigs,  from  their  susceptibility  to  cold,  are  often  attacked  bv 
"  rheumatism^  especially  in  its  more  chronic  forms.  This  is  a 
"  constitutional  disease  depending  on  the  presence  in  the  blood  of 
"  some  poisonous  materials,  probably  analogous  to  those  found 
"  within  the  gouty  joints  of  men.  Like  other  constitutional  dis- 
'*  eases,  it  is  accompanied  by  certain  local  symptoms.  In  pigs,  it 
*'  chiefly  affects  the  fibrous  serous  tissues  of  the  larger  joints,  gives 
*'  evidence  of  local  inflammation,  and  general  fever,  progresses 
*'  with  slow  and  lingering  steps,  and  does  not,  like  ordinary  inflam- 
"  mation,  terminate  in  suppuration  and  gangrene.  It  most  com- 
"  monly  occurs  among  young  pigs,  and  usually  owes  its  origin  to 
"  lying  in  a  wet  cold  bed.  It  always  produces  alteration  of 
''  structure  in  the  parts  affected,  which  predisposes  the  individual 
"  to  subsequent  attacks,  and  tends  to  reappear  in  the  progeny, 
'V^nilcring  them  also  specially  predisposed  to  the  complaint. 

"  Scrofula  is  more  common  in  pigs  than  in  any  other  of  the 
*'  domestic  animals.  It  sometimes  carries  off  whole  litters  before 
"  they  are  many  weeks  old.  *  *  *  Consumption  exhibits  the 
*'  same  symptoms  as  in  other  animals — gradually  increasing  ema- 
*'  elation  ;  imperfect  digestion  and  assimilation  ;  disturbed  respira- 
**  tion,  with  a  frequent  short  cough  ;  weakened  and  unusually 
*'  accelerated  circulation  ;  diarrhea  of  a  most  intractable  kind, 
*'  often  merging  into  dysentery  ;  and  general  prostration  of  the 
*'  vital  powers.  *  *  * 

*'  Scrofulous  Tumors  are  sometimes  met  with  among  pigs.  *  *  * 
*'  They  are  produced  by  the  fusion  of  degenerated  lymph,  incapa- 
*'  ble  of  perfect  organization,  and  mixed  up  with  tuberculous  mat- 
te ter.  *  *  *  These  local  symptoms  are  often  accompanied 
'*  by  some  of  the  usual  constitutional  symptoms  of  scrofula,  as  im- 
*'pairment  of  digestion  and  assimilation.  *  *  In  conclusion, 
"  we  may  repeat,  that  many  of  the  most  common,  and  some  of 
*'  the  most  serious,  diseases  of  sheep  and  pigs,  are  hereditary,  and 
**  that  they  spring  from  certain  vices  of  structure  or  disproportion 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT   OF   DOMESTIC   ANIMALS.    443 

of  parts,  either  of  a  local  or  general  nature.  Thev  are  propagated 
alike,  whether  occurring  in  the  male  or  female  parent,  but 
always  most  certainly  and  in  the  most  aggravated  form  when 
occurring  in  both.  Defects  and  diseases  that  have  already  been 
transmitted  through  several  generations  are  impressed  on  the 
progeny  in  a  most  decided,  permanent,  aud  irremediable  form  ; 
but  those  acquired  during  the  life-time  of  an  individual  also 
sometimes  become  hereditary,  especially  when  of  a  constitu- 
tional nature,  and  accompanied  by  any  considerable  alteration 
of  structure  or  function,  or  bv  a  debilitated  and  deteriorated  state 
of  health.  Indeed,  debility,  however  produced,  is  almost  cer- 
tain to  be  hereditary  ;  and  hence  all  breeding  animals  should  be 
in  a  strong  and  vigorous  condition,  especially  at  the  period  of 
scxu::!  congress." 

It  h  hardly  necessary  to  say  that  the  principles  laid  down  in  the 
foregoing  extracts  from  Dr.  Dun's  essay  apply  with  almost  equal 
force  to  the  breeding  oi  all  animals, — to  the  extent,  at  least,  of 
suggesting  that  in  all  cases  the  utmost  care  should  be  taken  to 
prevent  the  propagation  of  constitutional  defects,  whether  heredi- 
tary in  the  parents  or  acquired  by  them  as  a  consequence  of 
improper  circumstances  ot  11\  ing. 
Air.  Allen  says:* 

''  Mortifying  as  the  fact  may  be  to  human  pride,  it  is  neverthe- 
"  less  certain,  that  the  internal  arrangements — the  \iscera,  digestive 
"  organs,  omnivorous  propensities,  and  the  general  physiological 
"  structure — of  the  hog  and  the  bear  more  nearly  resemble  man 
"than  any  other  animal.  Many  of  t;  eir  diseases  may  therefore 
"be  expected  to  be  a  modification  of  those  of  the  human  species, 
"  and  require  a  similar  treatment. 

"  To  pulmonary  affections,  colds,  coughs,  and  measles,  swine 
"are  peculiarly  liable,  and,  as  with  most  other  e\ils,  prevention 
"of  disease  in  swine  is  more  easy  and  economical  than  cure.  A 
"  dry,  warm  bed,  free  from  winds  or  storms,  and  suitable  food,  will 
*' most  effectually  prevent  any  injuries,  or  fatal  attacks.    The  hog 

*  Dcrr.eslic  Animals       R.  L.  Allen.      O.  JudJ  &  Co.,  New  York. 


444  n  A  N  D  Y  -  B  0  0  K     OF    II  U  S  B  A  N  D  R  Y  . 

"  has  little  external  covering  to  protect  him  against  cold.  Nature 
*'  has  provided  this  immediatclv  within  the  skin,  in  the  deep  layer  of 
"  fat  which  surrounds  the  full,  plump  hog.  Fat  is  one  of  the  best 
^'  non-conductors  of  heat,  and  the  pig  which  is  well  fed  bids  defi- 
'' ance  to  the  intense  cold,  which  would  produce  great  suffering 
"and  consequent  disease  in  the  ill-conditioned  animal.  By  the 
'*  observance  of  a  proper  medium  between  too  much  fat  or  lean 
*' for  the  store  or  breeding  swine,  and  providing  them  with  com- 
'*  fortable  beds  and  proper  feed,  nearly  all  disease  will  be  avoided. 

"■  For  cough  and  itijiammation  of  the  lungs^  bleeding  should  be 
"  immediately  resorted  to,  after  which  give  gentle  purges  of  castor 
"  oil,  or  Epsom  salts  ;  and  this  should  be  followed  with  a  dose  of 
"antimonial  powders — two  grains,  mixed  with  half  a  dram  of  niter. 

*'For  costiveness  or  loss  of  appetite,  sulphur  is  an  excellent 
*'  remedy,  given  in  a  light  mess. 

*'  Itch  may  be  cured  by  anointing  with  equal  parts  of  lard  and 
*'  brimstone.  Rubbing-posts,  and  a  running  stream  to  wallow  in, 
"  are  preventives. 

"  The  kidney  worm  is  frequently  fatal  ;  and  always  produces 
*' weakness  of  the  loins  and  hind  legs,  usually  followed  bv  entire 
"prostration.  A  pig  thus  far  gone  is  hardly  worth  the  trouble  of 
"recovering,  even  where  practicable. 

^■^  Preventives  are,  general  thrift,  a  range  in  a  good  pasture,  and 
"a  dose  of  half  a  pint  of  wood-ashes  every  week  or  fortnight  in 
"  their  food.  A  small  quantity  of  saltpeter,  spirits  of  turpentine, 
**  or  tar,  will  effect  the  same  object.  When  attacked,  apply  spir- 
*' its  of  turpentine  to  the  loins,  and  administer  calomel  carefully  j 
*'  or  give  half  a  tablespoonful  of  copperas  dailv  for  one  or  two 
"  weeks. 

"  Blind  staggers  is  generally  confined  to  pigs,  and  manifests 
"  itself  in  foaming  at  the  mouth,  rearing  on  their  hind  legs,  champ- 
"  ing  and  grinding  their  teeth,  and  apparent  blindness.  The 
*' proper  remedies  are  bleeding  and  purging  freely,  and  these  fre- 
*'  quently  fail.  Many  nostrums  have  been  sutrgested,  but  few  are 
"of  any  utility.  It  is  important  to  keep  the  issues  on  the  inside 
"of  the  fore-legs,  just  below  the  knee,  thoroughly  cleansed. 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT    OF   DOMESTIC    ANIMALS.     445 

*■*•  The  tails  of  young  pigs  frequently  ^rop  or  rot  ojf]  which  is 
"  attended  with  no  further  disadvantage  to  the  animal  than  the 
■•'  loss  of  the  member.  The  remedies  are,  to  give  a  little  brimstone 
"or  sulphur  in  the  food  of  the  dam  ;  or  rub  oil  or  grease  daily  on 
"  the  affected  parts.  It  may  be  detected  by  a  roughness  or  scab- 
"  biness  at  the  point  where  separation  is  likely  to  occur. 

''''Bleeding. — The  most  convenient  mode  is  from  an  artery  just 
"  above  the  knee,  on  the  inside  of  the  fore-arm.  It  may  be  drawn 
"  more  copiously  from  the  roof  of  the  mouth.  The  flow  of  blood 
"  may  usually  be  stopped  by  applying  a  sponge  or  cloth  with  cold 
"  water. 

"The  diseases  of  swine,  though  not  numerous,  are  formidable, 
"and  many  of  them  soon  become  fatal.  They  have  not  been  the 
"subject  of  particular  scientific  study,  and  most  of  the  remedies 
"applied  are  rather  the  result  of  casual  or  hap-hazard  suggestion 
"  than  of  well-digested  inference  from  long-continued  and  accu- 
"  rate  observation." 

The  cardinal  principles  of  successful  pig  raising  are,  to  breed 
only  from  sound  and  healthy  parents  of  remote  relationship,  to 
keep  the  animals  in  dry,  warm,  and  cleanly  quarters,  to  feed  regu- 
larly sufficiently  and  with  varying  food,  and  to  remove  as  early  as 
possible  any  diseased  or  weakly  animal  from  the  herd. 

POULTRY. 

It  is  rare  to  take  up  an  agricultural  paper  without  coming 
across  a  recipe  for  the  treatment  of  some  one  of  the  diseases  to 
which  poultry  is  subject;  and  in  almost  all  cases  the  recommenda- 
tions given  claim  to  be  based  on  the  successful  experience  of  the 
writers.  Probably  there  is  no  branch  of  the  comprehensive  sub- 
ject of  the  treatment  of  the  diseases  to  which  farm  stock  is  liable, 
on  which  so  much  has  been  written,  and  in  which  so  much  uncer- 
tainty still  exists.  It  would  be  easy  to  write  an  interesting  chapter 
for  this  book  on  the  subject  of  the  different  ailments  of  poultry, 
and  the  different  recommendations  for  their  treatment.  As  the 
most  comprehensive  and  lucid  statement  concerning  the  manage- 


446  IIAXDY-DOOK    OF    IIUSBAXDUY. 

ment  of  the  more  important  diseases  is  given  in  Saunders*  Domes- 
tic Poultry^*  I  can  hardlv  do  better  within  mv  narrow  limits  than  to 
copy  it  entire  : — 

"  Among  the  diseases  of  fowls,  nothing  is  so  fatal  to  the  bird, 
"■or  so  vexatious  to  the  fancier,  as  the  Roup.  Very  close  ob- 
*'  servation  and  experience  ha\  e  taught  me  the  hrst  premonitory 
''  symptom  is  a  peculiar  breathing.  The  fowl  appears  in  perfect 
*'  health  for  the  time,  but  it  will  be  seen  that  the  skin  hanging 
"■  from  the  lower  beak,  and  to  which  the  wattle  is  attached,  is 
"  inflated  and  emptied  at  every  breath — such  a  bird  should  alwavs 
''  be  removed. 

"  The  disease  may  be  caused,  first,  by  cold,  damp  weather  and 
"  easterly  winds,  when  fowls  of  weakly  habit  and  bad  constitution 
*'  will  often  sicken,  but  healthy,  strong  birds  will  not.  Again,  if 
*'  by  any  accidental  cause  thev  are  long  without  food  and  water, 
"and  then  have  an  unlimited  quantitv  of  drink  and  whole  corn 
"given  to  them,  thcv  gorge  thenisehes,  and  ill-liealth  is  the  con- 
"  sequence  ;  but  confinement  is  the  chief  cause,  and  above  all, 
"being  shut  up  in  tainted  coops.  Nothing  is  so  difficult  as  to 
"  keep  fowls  healthv  in  confinement  in  large  cities  ;  two  days 
"  will  often  suffice  to  change  the  bright,  bold  cock  into  the  spirit- 
*'  less,  drooping,  roupv  fowl,  carrying  contagion  wherever  he  goes. 

"  But  all  roup  does  not  come  from  cities  ;  often  in  the  spring 
"  of  the  )ear  the  cocks  fight,  and  it  is  necessary  to  take  one 
"away;  search  is  made  for  something  to  put  him  in,  and  a  rab- 
*•*•  bit-hutch  or  open  basket  is  found,  wherein  he  is  confined  and 
"  often  irregularly  supplied  with  lood,  till  pity  for  his  altered 
"condition  causes  him  to  be  let  out;  but  he  has  become  roupy, 
"  and  the  whole  yard  suffers.  I  dwell  at  length  on  this,  because 
*'of  all  disorders  it  is  the  worst,  and  because,  although  a  cure  may 
"seem  to  be  effected,  yet  at  moulting,  or  any  time  when  out  of 
"  condition,  the  fowl  will  be  more  or  less  aflected  with  it  again. 
*'  One  thing  is  here  deser\  ing  of  notice.  The  result  of  the  attcn- 
"  tion  paid  to  poultry  ot  late  ^  ears  has  been  to  improve  the  health 
*'and  constitution  of  the  birds.      Roup   is   not  nearly  so  common 

*  New  York  :   O.  Judd  &  Co.      1S67. 


MEDICAL   T  R  E  A  T  M  1<:  N  T    OF   DOMESTIC    ANIMALS.     447 

"  as  it  was,  nor  is  it  so  difficult  of  cure.  It  went  on  unnoticea,  for- 
"  merly,  till  it  had  become  chronic,  and  it  would  not  be  difficult  to 
"  name  yards  that  have  now  a  good  reputation,  but  which,  a  few 
"years  since,  never  had  a  healthy  fowl.  It  is  iiow  treated  at  the 
"  outset,  if  seen,  but  the  improved  management  in  most  places  ren- 
"  ders  it  of  rare  occurrence.  The  cold  which  precedes  it  may 
"  often  be  cured  by  feeding  twice  a  day  with  stale  crusts  of  bread 
"soaked  in  strong  ale.  There  must  be  provided  warm,  dry  hous- 
"  ing,  cleanliness,  nutritive  and  somewhat  stimulating  food,  and 
"  medicine.  In  my  own  case  I  generally  give  as  medicine  some 
"  tincture  of  iron  in  the  water  pans,  and  some  stimulants.  The 
"  suspected  fowl  should  be  removed  directly,  and  if  there  be 
"  plenty  without  it,  and  if  it  be  not  of  any  breed  that  makes  its  pres- 
*' ervation  a  matter  of  moment,  it  should  be  killed.  There  is  very 
"little  doubt  of  a  cure  if  taken  in  the  first  stage  ;  but,  if  the  eye- 
*' lids  be  swollen,  the  nostrils  closed,  the  breathing  difficult,  and 
"the  discharge  fetid  and  continual,  it  will  be  a  long  time  before 
"  the  bird  is  well.  In  this  stage  it  may  be  termed  the  consumption 
"  of  fowls,  and  with  them,  as  in  human  beings,  most  cases  are 
"beyond  cure.  However  I  may  differ  from  some  eminent  and 
"  talented  amateurs,  I  do  not  hesitate  to  say  it  is  contagious  in  a 
"  high  degree.  Where  fowls  are  wasting  without  apparent  dis- 
"  order,  a  teaspoonful  of  cod-liver  oil  per  day  will  be  found  a  most 
"  efficacious  remedy. 

"  I  Vvill  next  mention  a  disease  common  to  chickens  at  an  early 
"age — I  mean  the  gapes.  These  are  caused  by  numerous  small 
"  worms  in  the  throat.  The  best  way  I  know  of  getting  rid  of 
"them  is,  to  take  a  hen's  tail-feather,  strip  it  to  within  an  inch  of 
"the  end,  put  it  down  the  chicken's  windpipe,  twist  it  sharply 
"round  several  times,  and  draw  it  quickly  out;  the  worms  will 
"  be  found  entangled  in  the  feathers.  When  this  is  not  effectual 
"  in  removing  them,  if  the  tip  of  the  feather  be  dipped  in  turpen- 
*' tine  it  will  kill  them,  but  it  must  be  put  down  the  windpipe,  not 
*' the  gullet.  ^  have  always  thought  these  were  got  from  impure 
"water,  and  I  have  been  informed  by  a  gentleman  who  inquires 
*' closely  into  those  things,  that  having  placed  some  of  the  worms 

29 


448  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

*'  taken  from  the  throat  of  a  chicken,  and  some  from  the  bottom 
*■'■  of  a  water-butt,  where  rain-water  had  stood  a  long  time,  under 
*'a  microscope,  he  found  them  identical.  I  have  never  met  with 
"gapes  where  fowls  had  a  running  stream  to  drink  at.  Camphor 
*■  is  perhaps  the  best  cure  for  gapes,  and  if  some  is  constantly 
"  kept  in  the  water  they  drink,  they  take  it  readily.  This  has 
"  been  fnosi  successful.  There  is  also  another  description  of 
"gapes,  arising  probably  from  internal  fever-,  I  have  found  meal 
"  mixed  with  milk  and  salts  a  good  remedv.  They  are  sometimes 
"  caused  by  a  hard  substance  at  the  tip  of  the  tongue  -,  in  this  case, 
"remove  it  sharply  with  the  thumb-nail,  and  let  it  bleed  freely. 
*■'•  A  gentleman  mentioned  this  to  me  who  had  met  with  it  in  an 
"  old  French  writing  on  poultry. 

"  Sometimes  a  fowl  will  droop  suddenly,  after  being  in  perfect 
"  health  ;  if  caught  directly,  it  will  be  found  it  has  eaten  some- 
"  thing  that  has  hardened  in  the  crop  ;  pour  plenty  of  warm  water 
"  down  the  throat,  and  loosen  the  food  till  it  is  soft  ;  then  give  a 
"  tablespoonful  of  castor-oil,  or  about  as  much  jalap  as  will  lie  on 
"a  ten-cent  piece,  mixed  in  butter  ;  make  a  pill  of  it  and  slide  it 
"  into  the  crop  ;  the  fowl  will  be  well  in  the  morning. 

"  Cayenne  pepper  or  chalk,  or  both  mixed  with  meal,  are  con- 
'*  venient  and  good  remedies  for  scouring. 

"  When  fowls  are  restless,  dissatisfied,  and  continually  scratch- 
"  ing,  it  is  often  caused  by  lice  ;  these  can  be  got  rid  of  by  sup- 
"  plying  their  houses  or  haunts  with  plenty  of  ashes,  especially 
*'  wood  ashes,  in  which  they  may  dust  themselves,  and  the  dust- 
*' bath  is  rendered  more  effectual  by  adding  some  sulphur  to  the 
"  dust.  It  must  be  borne  in  mind,  all  birds  must  have  the  bath  5 
"some  use  water,  some  dust  ;  but  both  from  the  same  instinctive 
*' knowledge  of  i;s  necessity.  Where  a  shallow  stream  of  water 
*'  runs  across  a  gravel  road,  it  will  be  found  full  of  small  birds 
*'  washing  ;  where  a  bank  is  dry,  and  well  exposed  to  the  sun, 
"  birds  of  all  kinds  will  be  found  burying  themselves  in  the  dust. 

"  Sometimes  fowls  appear  cramped,  they  have  difficulty  in 
"  standing  upright,  and  rest  on  their  knees ;  in  large,  young 
"  birds,   especially  cocks,  this   is   merely  the   effect   of  weakness 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT   OF   DOMESTIC   ANIMALS.     449 

"  from  fast  growth,  and  the  difficulty  their  long,  weak  legs  have 
*'  in  carrying  their  bodies.  But  if  it  lasts  after  they  are  getting 
"age,  then  it  must  be  seen  to.  If  their  resting-place  has  a 
"wooden,  stone,  or  brick  floor,  this  is  probably  the  cause  ;  if  this 
"  is  not  so,  stimulating  food,  such  as  I  have  described  for  other 
"  diseases,  must  be  given. 

"  Fowls,  like  human  beings,  are  subject  to  atmospherical  influ- 
"  ence  ;  and  if  healthy  fowls  seem  suddenly  attacked  with  illness 
"  that  cannot  be  explained,  a  copious  meal  of  bread  steeped  in  ale 
"  will  often  prove  a  speedy  and  effectual  remedy.  For  adults, 
"  nothing  will  restore  strength  sooner  than  eggs,  boiled  hard, 
"and  chopped  fine.  If  these  remedies  are  not  successful,  then 
"  the  constitution  is  at  fault,  and  good,  healthy  cocks  must  be 
"  sought  to  replace  those  whose  progeny  is  faulty. 

"  '•  Prevention  is  better  than  cure.'  The  cause  of  many  diseases 
"  is  to  be  found  in  enfeebled  and  bad  constitutions  ;  and  these  are 
"  the  consequences  of  in-and-in  breeding.  The  introduction  of 
"  fresh  blood  is  absolutely  necessary  every  second  year,  and  even 
"every  year  is  better.  Many  fanciers  who  breed  for  feather,  fear 
"to  do  so  lest  false  colors  should  appear,  but  they  should  recollect 
"that  one  of  the  first  symptoms  of  degeneracy  is  a  foul  feather; 
"  for  instance,  the  Sebright  bantam  loses  lacing,  and  becomes 
*'  patched,  the  Spanish  fowls  throw  white  feathers,  and  pigeons 
"practice  numberless  freaks.  An  experiment  was  once  tried 
"  which  will  illustrate  this.  A  pair  of  black  pigeons  was  put  in 
"  a  large  loft,  and  allowed  to  breed  without  any  introduction  of 
*'  fresh  blood.  They  were  well  and  carefully  fed.  At  the  end  of 
"  two  years  an  account  of  them  was  taken.  They  had  greatly 
"  multiplied,  but  only  one-third  of  the  number  were  black,  and  the 
*'  others  had  become  spotted  with  white,  then  patched,  and  then 
"  quite  white  ;  while  the  latter  had  not  only  lost  the  characteristics 
"  of  the  breed  from  which  they  descended,  but  were  weak  and 
"  deformed  in  every  possible  way.  The  introduction  of  fresh 
"  blood  prevents  all  this  ;  and  the  breeder  for  prizes,  or  whoever 
"  wishes  to  have  the  best  of  the  sort  he  keeps,  should  never  let 
"  a    fowl    escape   him    if    it    possesses    the    qualities    he    seeks. 


450  HAXDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"  Such  are  not  always  to  be  had  when  wanted,  and  the  best 
"  strains  we  have,  of  every  sort,  have  been  got  up  by  this  plan. 
''There  is  one  thing  worthy  of  remaik;  none  of  our  fowls 
*'  imported  from  warmer  climates  are  subject  to  roup,  as  Spanish, 
*'  Cochins,  Brahmas,  and  Aialays.  But  those  from  a  damp 
"  country,  like  Holland,  seem  to  have  seeds  of  it  always  in 
"  them.  The  following  tonic  is  highly  recommended  by  Mr. 
"  John  Douglas  of  the  Wolsely  Aviaries,  England,  to  prevent 
"  roup  and  gapes  in  chickens  and  old  fowls  : — '  One  pound  of 
"sulphate  of  iron,  one  ounce  of  sulphuric  acid,  dissolved  in  a  jug 
"  with  hot  water,  then  let  it  stand  twenty-four  hours,  and  add  one 
"gallon  of  spring  water;  when  fit  for  use,  one  teaspoonful  to  a 
"  pint  of  water  given  every  other  day  to  chickens  and  once  a 
"  week  to  old  fowls,  will  make  roup  and  gapes  entirely  a  stranger 
"  to  your  yards.'  This  may  be  true  if  perfect  cleanliness  is  main- 
"tained,  and  the  fowls  are  in  other  respects  well-treated." 

There  are  other  works  on  poultry  in  which  the  question  of 
diseases  is  more  fully  treated,  and  from  which  much  sound  advice 
may  be  obtained,  but  in  reading  these,  as  in  considering  the  in- 
structions given  in  agricultural  papers,  the  farmer  should  exercise 
a  full  share  of  discreet  judgment,  and  hesitate  to  adopt  any 
severe  remedy  which  does  not   commend  itself  as  rational. 

Making  Capons. — The  excellence  of  the  flesh  of  the  capon  has 
been  known  for  ages,  and  the  price  of  these  birds  in  the  poultry 
markets  of  the  world,  is  always  very  much  higher  than  is  that  of 
other  poultry.  It  is  hardly  astonishing  that  their  production  is  so 
limited,  when  we  consider  the  fact  that  the  castration  of  the  cock 
is  a  much  more  delicate  operation,  and  is  more  likely  to  be 
attended  with  fatal  results,  than  is  that  of  other  animals.  An 
idea  prevails,  though  I  can  hardly  think  it  a  just  one,  that  capon- 
izing  is  an  especially  cruel  process.  Castration  is  unquestionably 
in  all  cases  attended  with  pain  ;  but  it  is  extremely  doubtful 
whether  it  produces  more  pain  in  the  case  of  the  bird  than  of  the 
quadruped.  The  greediness  with  which  the  rcmo\  ed  parts  are 
eaten  by  the  animal  himself,  while  still  bound  to  the  table,  would 
indicate  that  the  pain  of  the  operation  is  not  very  depressing. 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT  OF   DOMESTIC    ANIMALS.     451 

The  following  account  of  the  manner  in  which  capons  are 
made  in  France  was  prepared  many  years  ago,  for  private  circu- 
lation, by  a  gentleman  in  Philadelphia  who  had  great  skill  in  the 
art  and  whose  success  was  admirable.  I  am  enabled  by  personal 
experience  to  say  that  if  the  directions  are  strictly  adhered  to  there 
is  very  little  risk  of  the  loss  of  life,  and,  so  far  as  I  have  been  able 
to  observe,  no  more  suffering  than  attends  the  castration  of  calves 
and  pigs.  The  instruments  referred  to  can  be  obtained  from 
surgical-instrument  makers.  With  these  before  him,  the  reader 
will  readily  understand  the  directions. 

"  DIRECTIONS    FOR    MAKING    CAPONS. 

"  Fowls  intended  to  be  cut,  must  be  kept  at  least  twenty-four 
hours  without  food,  otherwise  the  entrails  will  fill  the  cavity  of 
the  belly,  and  render  it  almost  impossible  to  complete  the  opera- 
tion ;  besides,  when  they  have  been  starved  the  proper  length  of 
time,  they  are  less  liable  to  bleed. 

"  The  chicken  is  taken  at  any  age,  from  five  days  old  until  it  be- 
gins to  crow,  or  even  after.  Lay  the  fowl  on  its  left  side  on  the 
floor,  draw  the  wings  back,  and  keep  it  firm  by  resting  the  right 
foot  on  its  legs,  and  the  other  foot  or  knee  on  its  wings.  (The 
table  with  the  apparatus  does  away  with  the  necessity  of  this  stoop- 
ing position.)  Be  careful  that  the  head  of  the  fowl  is  not  held 
down,  or  even  touched  during  the  operation,  as  it  would  be  sure 
to  cause  it  to  bleed.  Pluck  the  feathers  off  from  its  right  side  near 
the  hip  joint,  in  a  line  between  that  and  the  shoulder  joint  ;  the 
space  uncovered  should  be  a  little  more  than  an  inch  square. 
Make  an  incision  between  the  last  two  ribs,  havino-  first  drawn  the 
part  backward,  so  when  left  to  itself  it  will  cover  the  wound  in  the 
flesh.  In  some  fowls  the  thigh  is  so  far  forward  that  it  covers 
the  last  two  ribs  ;  in  which  case,  care  must  be  taken  to  draw  the 
flesh  of  the  thigh  well,  so  as  not  to  cut  through  it,  or  else  it 
would  lame  the  fowl,  and  perhaps  cause  its  death  in  a  few  days 
after  the  operation,  by  inflaming. 
"  The  ribs  are  to  be  kept  open  by  the  hooks — the  opening  must 
"•  be  enlarged  each  way  by  the  knife,  if  necessary,  until  the  tes- 


452  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"  tides,  which  are  attached  to  the  backbone,  are  entirely  exposed 
^^  to  view,  together  with  the  intestines  in  contact  with  them. 
"■The  testicles  are  inclosed  in  a  thin  skin,  connecting  them  with 
"  the  back  and  sides — this  must  be  laid  hold  of  with  the  pliers, 
*'and  then  torn  awav  with  the  pointed  instrument  ;  doing  it  first 
"  on  the  upper  testicle,  then  on  the  lower.  (The  lower  testicle 
"  will  generally  be  found  a  little  behind  the  other — that  is,  a  little 
*'  nearer  the  rump.)  Next  introduce  the  loop,  (which  is  made  of 
'•  a  horse  hair  or  a  fiber  of  cocoanut  ;)  it  must  be  put  around  the 
"■'  testicle  which  is  uppermost,  in  doing  which  the  spoon  is  ser- 
*'  viceable  to  raise  up  the  testicle  and  push  the  loop  under  it,  so 
*'  that  it  shall  be  brought  to  act  upon  the  part  which  holds  the 
*' testicle  to  the  back  ;  then  tear  it  ofF  by  pushing  the  tube  toward 
"  the  rump  of  the  fowl,  at  the  same  time  drawing  the  loop.  Then 
'■'■  scoop  it  and  the  blood  out  with  the  spoon,  and  perform  the 
*'same  operation  on  the  other  testicle.  Take  away  the  hooks, 
*■*■  draw  the  skin  oxer  and  close  the  wound  •,  stick  the  feathers  that 
"you  pulled  off  before,  on  the  wound,  and  let  the  bird  go. 

"  Remarks. — If  the  operation  be  performed  without  sufficient 
"  skill,  manv  of  the  fowls  will  prove  not  to  be  capons  ;  these  may 
*'be  killed  for  use  as  soon  as  the  head  begins  to  grow  large  and 
*'  get  red,  and  they  begin  to  chase  the  hens.  The  real  capon  will 
*' make  itself  known  bv  the  head  remaining  small,  and  the  comb 
"  small  and  withered  ;  the  feathers  of  the  neck  or  mane  wi'l  also 
"  get  longer,  and  the  tail  will  be  handsomer  and  longer  :  they 
"  should  be  kept  to  the  age  of  fifteen  or  eighteen  months,  which 
"  will  bring  them  in  the  spring  and  summer,  when  poultry  is 
"  scarce  and  brings  a  high  price.  Take  care,  howe\  er,  not  to 
"kill  them  near  moulting  time,  as  all  poultry  then  is  very  inferior. 
"The  operation  fails,  principally,  by  bursting  the  testicle,  so  that 
*'the  skin  which  incloses  the  soft  matter,  remains  in  the  bird  and 
"the  testicle  grows  again. 

"  Birds  of  five  or  six  months  are  less  liable  to  have  the  testicles 
*' burst  in  the  operation  than  younger  A)wls,  but  they  arc  more 
"  apt  to  bleed  to  death  than  those  of  from  two  to  four  months  old. 

"  A  skillful  operator  will  always  choose  fowls  of  from  two  to 


MEDICAL   TREATMENT   OF   DOMESTIC   ANIMALS.    453 

three  months  ; — he  will  prefer  also,  to  take  off  the  lower  testi- 
cle first,  as  then  the  blood  will  not  prevent  him  from  proceeding 
with  the  other  ;  whereas,  when  the  upper  one  is  taken  off  the 
first,  if  there  should  be  any  bleeding,  he  has  to  wait  before  he 
can  take  off  the  lower  testicle. 

"  The  large  vein  that  supplies  the  entrails  with  blood  passes  in 
the  neighborhood  of  the  testicles  ;  there  is  danger  that  a  young 
beginner  may  pierce  it  with  the  pointed  instrument  in  taking  off 
the  skin  of  the  lower  testicle,  in  which  case  the  chicken  would 
die  instantly,  for  all  the  blood  in  its  body  would  issue  out. 
There  are  one  or  two  smaller  veins  which  must  be  avoided, 
which  is  very  easy,  as  they  are  not  difficult  to  see.  If  properly 
managed,  no  blood  ever  appears  until  the  testicle  is  taken  off;  so 
that  should  any  appear  before  that,  the  operator  will  know  that 
he  has  done  something  wrong. 

''  If  a  chicken  die,  it  is  during  the  operation,  by  bleeding,  (of 
course  it  is  as  proper  for  use  as  if  it  bled  to  death  by  having  its 
throat  cut  ;)  they  very  seldom  die  after,  unless  they  have  re- 
ceived some  internal  injury,  or  the  flesh  of  the  thigh  has  been 
cut  through,  from  not  being  drawn  back  from  off  the  last  two 
ribs,  where  the  incision  is  made  ;  all  of  which  are  apt  to  be  the 
case  with  young  practitioners. 

"  If  the  testicles  be  found  to  be  large,  the  bamboo  tube  should 
be  used,  and  it  should  have  a  strong  cocoanut  string  in  it, — for 
small  ones  the  silver  tube  with  a  horse  hair  in  it,  is  best. 
"  When  a  chicken  has  been  cut,  it  is  necessary  before  letting 
it  run,  to  put  a  permanent  mark  upon  it  ;  otherwise  it  would 
be  impossible  to  distinguish  it  from  others  not  cut.  I  have  been 
accustomed  to  cut  off  the  outside  or  the  inside  toe  of  the  left 
foot, — by  this  means  I  can  distinguish  them  at  a  distance. 
Another  mode  is  to  cut  off  the  comb,  then  shave  off  the  spurs 
close  to  the  leg,  and  stick  them  upon  the  bleeding  head,  where 
they  will  grow  and  become  ornamental  in  the  shape  of  a  pair  of 
horns.  This  last  mode  is  perhaps  the  best,  but  it  is  not  so 
simple  and  ready  as  the  first.  Whichever  mode  is  adopted,  the 
fowl  should  be  marked  before  performing  the  operation,  because 


454  IIANDV-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"  the  loss  of  blood  occasioned  by  cutting  off  the  comb  or  a  toe, 
**  makes  the  fowl  less  likely  to  bleed  internally  during  the 
*'  operation.  It  is  verv  common,  soon  after  the  operation,  for  the 
"chicken  to  get  wind  in  the  side,  when  the  wound  is  healing,  be- 
"  tween  the  flesh  and  the  skin  ;  it  must  be  relieved  by  making  a 
**  small  incision  in  the  skin,  which  will  let  the  wind  escape. 

"  Those  fowls  make  the  finest  capons  which  are  hatched  early 
"in  the  spring  ;  they  can  be  cut  before  the  hot  weather  comes, 
*'  which  is  a  great  advantage. 

"  Never  attempt  to  cut  a  full-grown  cock  ;  it  is  a  useless 
"and  cruel  piece  of  curiosity.  I  have  never  known  one  to  live. 
"  The  first  efforts  at  acquiring  this  art  should  be  made  on  dead 
"  subjects  ;  this  will  save  the  infliction  of  much  crueltv.  Be  not 
"discouraged  with  the  first  difficulties;  with  practice  they  will 
"  disappear  ;  every  season  you  will  find  yourself  more  expert, 
"  until  the  cutting  of  a  dozen  fowls  before  breakfast  will  be  a 
*'  small  matter. 

*'  It  may  be  well  to  give  a  warning  against  becoming  dissatisfied 
"  with  the  tools.  A  raw  hand,  when  he  meets  with  difficulties,  is 
"  i»pt  to  think  the  tools  are  in  fault,  and  sets  about  to  improve 
"  them  and  invent  others  ;  but  it  is  only  himself  that  lacks  skill, 
**  which  practice  alone  can  give.  I  have  spent  money,  besides 
*'  wasting  my  time  in  this  foolish  notion,  but  have  always  found 
"that  the  old,  original  tools,  which  came  from  China,  and  where 
"this  mode  of  operating  was  invented,  are  the  best. 

"  Take  care  that  the  tools  are  not  abused  by  ignorant  persons 
**  attempting  to  use  them;  they  will  last  a  person's  life-time  if 
*'  properly  used  ;  but  if  put  out  or  order,  none  but  a  surgical- 
*'^  instrument  maker  can  repair  them  properly." 

In  all  cases  where  sufficient  attention  is  given  to  the  raising  of 
poultry  to  make  their  preparation  for  the  market  an  important 
item  of  business,  there  can  be  no  question  that  much  profit  would 
result  from  an  adoption  of  the  system  of  caponizing  ;  but,  done  in 
a  hap-hazard  way,  no  especial  care  being  given  to  the  preparation 
of  the  birds  for  sale,  and  to  the  establishment  of  a  reputation  in  the 
market,  it  would  probably  not  be  worth  while  to  attempt  it  at  all. 


CHAPTER    XVI. 


THE    DAIRY. 


Of  all  the  means  by  which  farmers  convert  the  productions  of 
the  soil  into  merchantable  products  the  dairy  is  the  most  scientific 
and  systematic.  At  the  same  time,  if  its  various  operations  are 
conducted  with  care  and  on  sound  business  principles,  it  is  by  far 
the  most  profitable,  and  conduces  more  than  any  other  to  the 
proper  maintenance  of  the  fertility  of  the  soil. 

Dairy  farming  includes  the  preparation  for  market  of  the  three 
great  staples, — milk,  cheese,  and  butter. 

Farmers  living  within  easy  reach  (and  in  these  days  two  hun- 
dred miles  of  railroad  are  easy)  of  a  large  market  for  milk,  have 
generally  found  that,  in  view  of  the  less  care  required,  the  most 
profitable  course  to  pursue  is  to  sell  the  entire  product  of  milk  to 
the  wholesale  dealers.  Were  this  course  pursued  for  many  years 
in  succession,  without  the  purchase  of  food  from  exterior  sources, 
the  result  would  be  injurious  to  almost  any  land.  But  since  it  is 
universally  found  to  be  profitable  to  purchase  brewers'  c;rains,  bran, 
linseed  meal,  cotton-seed  meal,  or  other  concentrated  food,  it  is 
probable  that  the  amount  of  phosphates  and  of  ammonia  restored  to 
the  farm  in  the  purchased  food,  compensates  for  the  loss  of  mineral 
matter  in  the  milk  sold.  For  the  future, — for  that  dav  when  the 
constant  removal  of  more  earthv  plant  constituents  than  are 
restored  in  the  purchased  food  shall  have  materially  lessened  the 
productiveness  of  the  land, — there  is  no  doubt  that  means  of 
restoration  will  be  found  that  do  not  now  exist  in  an  available 
form,  or  that  such  as  do  now  exist  will  be  more  largely  made  use 
of,  and  that  when    the   addition  of  large  quantities  of  phosphoric 


456  HANDY-BOOK    OF    UUSBANDRT. 

acid,  potash,  etc.,  become  necessary  to  fertility  they  can  be  ob- 
tained bv  farmers  at  paving  rates. 

To  take  an  extremelv  theoretical  view  of  the  selling  of  milk, 
it  may  be  said  that  we  act  on  the  principle  that  "  sufficient  unto  the 
dav  is  the  e\  il  thereof."  Practicallv,  I  am  inclined  to  think  that, 
while  the  future  deterioration  of  the  soil  is  pretty  certain,  all  of 
the  circumstances  of  the  case  being  considered,  this  system  is  not 
injudicious.  So  long  as  by  the  feeding  of  purchased  food,  and  by 
the  careful  use  of  the  manure  produced,  the  fertility  of  the  land 
may  be  kept  at  a  satisfactory  point,  farmers,  as  a  rule,  will  not, 
and  perhaps  it  is  not  necessary  that  they  should,  spend  large  sums 
in  the  purchase  of  special  fertilizers  ;  because,  when  thev  become 
really  necessary,  thev  are  morally  certain  to  be  purchased  and  to 
be  applied  with  judgment.  Therefore,  the  most  careful  and 
economical  foresight  need  not  be  greatly  alarmed  by  the  pres- 
ent waste  of  capital.  Or,  to  state  the  case  in  a  few  words,  so 
long  as  farming  will  pay  without  the  purchase  of  foreign  manures, 
so  long  will  they  be  dispensed  with  ;  when  farming  will  only  pay 
with  their  assistance  they  are  sure  to  be  purchased  ;  consequently, 
while  in  an  operation  of  mv  own  I  should  carefully  eschew  any  sys- 
tem which  removed  from  the  soil  in  any  single  year  more  mineral 
matter  than  the  purchased  food  of  that  year  returned  to  it,  I  am 
fully  aware  that  most  farmers  situated,  as  they  often  are,  remote 
from  the  sources  of  these  fertilizers,  either  will  not  or  cannot  adhere 
to  this  rule  ;  and  while  I  believe  that  either  they  or  their  descendants 
will  suffer  to  a  certain  extent  from  their  course,  I  do  not  believe  that 
the  inconvenience  will  be  very  great,  or  that  the  ultimate  profit  of 
their  operations  will  be  disastrously  reduced.  This  question  of 
the  remo\  al  of  phosphates  and  potash  is  the  only  grave  objection  to 
the  selling  of  milk.  Setting  that  aside,  we  see  ample  reason  why 
all  farmers,  who  are  so  situated  that  their  milk  can  be  conveniently 
sold,  day  bv  day,  should  prefer  this  means  of  converting  it  into 
money  ;  for  it  is  desirable  to  avoid  the  perplexing  cares  of  the 
buttery  and  cheese-room  when  possible  •,  and  ordinarily  the  price 
obtained  for  the  milk  is  pretty  nearly  as  great  as  would  be  obtained 
for  the  various  products  of  milk  if  manufactured  at  home. 


THE    DAIRY.  457 

To  show,  howe\'er,  that  the  "  mineral  theory  "  offers  a  grave 
objection  to  the  sale  of  milk,  it  is  only  necessary  to  state  the 
teachings  of  the  following  : — 

Jnalysis  of  Milk  by   Haidlen. 

Water 873- 

Butter -io- 

Caseine    48"  Z 

Milk  Sugar 43'9 

Phosphate  of  Lime z-ii 

Magnesia -42 

Iron 07 

Chloride  of  Potassium i  -44. 

Sodium  and  Soda ; -66 

1,00000 

One  hundred  gallons  of  milk  weigh  about  1,000  pounds  ;  there- 
fore, each  hundred  gallons  remove  from  the  farm  2-3 1  pounds  of 
phosphate  of  lime,  and  I '44  pounds  of  chloride  of  potassium.  For 
our  present  purposes  the  other  constituents  of  the  milk  may  be 
disregarded,  as  being  less  in  quantity  and  comparatively  unimpor- 
tant. Ten  cows  of  good  average  quality  will  produce  perhaps 
5,000  gallons  of  milk  per  annum,  and  the  sale  of  their  milk  will 
remove  from  the  farm  11 5*5  pounds  of  phosphate  of  lime,  and  72 
pounds  of  chloride  of  potassium. 

It  is  true  that  these  amounts  seem  trifling,  when  compared  with 
the  immense  q'uantities  of  both  of  these  elements  that  all  fertile 
soils  contain  ;  but  it  must  not  be  forgotten  that  of  the  very  large 
content  of  mineral  food  developed  by  a  searching  analysis  of  the 
soil,  only  a  slight  proportion  is  yearly  made  available  for  the  uses 
of  the  plant,  and  that  the  whole  quantity  removed  is  taken  from 
this  available  stock.  If  the  restoration  by  natural  processes  is 
sufficiently  active  to  make  up  for  the  removal,  and  in  many  cases 
no  doubt  it  would  be,  practical  farming  need  take  no  cognizance 
of  the  loss.  But  on  lands  where  yearlv  manuring  is  necessary  for 
the  production  of  satisfactory  crops,  there  is  no  doubt  that  even 
this  slight  removal  would  in  manv  instances  tend,  sooner  or  later, 
to  the  impoverishment  of  the  land.  As  before  stated,  however, 
the  threatened   impoverishment   is   now  so  remote,  and  the  means 


458  IIANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

of  recuperation  so  certain,  that  the  question  whether  to  sell  milk 
or  to  manufacture  it  on  the  farm  should  be  decided  mainlv  in  the 
light  of  the  question  of  profit  and  loss. 

For  a  milk  dairy,  pure  and  simple,  such  cows  should  be  selected 
as  are  known  to  give  an  excessively  large  yield  of  milk.  For  sale 
in  the  market  the  question  of  quality  is  of  little  consequence,  as, 
especially  when  sold  to  wholesale  dealers,  there  would  be  no  dif- 
ference in  price  resulting  from  superior  richness.  Quantity  is  the 
only  point  to  be  looked  to,  and  to  gain  this  we  should  not  only 
select  large  milkers,  but  should  feed  them  on  such  food  as,  while 
it  would  properly  sustain  all  ot  the  functions  of  their  bodies,  would 
stimulate  the  production  of  the  greatest  possible  flow  of  milk. 

For  the  manufacture  of  butter  and  cheese,  howe\er,  we  should 
be  influenced  by  far  different  considerations.  Not  only  should  we 
select  such  cows  as  are  known  to  produce  milk  rich  in  the  con- 
stituents that  our  butter  or  cheese  requires,  but  we  should  feed 
them  on  such  food  as  will  increase  the  production  of  these  richer 
constituents  to  the  greatest  extent  that  is  possible  without  injury 
to  the  animals'  health. 

BREEDS  OF  DAIRY  CATTLE. 

Tlie  short-horns^  while  they  are  the  largest  of  all  the  bovine 
races,  are  sometimes  the  greatest  milkers.  Certain  families, 
that  have  long  been  grown  for  beef  purposes  only,  produce  so 
little  milk  that  it  is  sometimes  difficult  to  give  calves  a  fair  head- 
way by  feeding  them  on  the  milk  of  their  dams  alone.  Other 
families  again,  which  are  known  as  great  milkers,  give  larger  yields 
than  almost  any  other  breed  with  which  we  are  familiar,  and  they 
have  the  great  advantage  that,  when  their  usefulness  for  milking  is 
ended,  they  may  be  rapidly  fattened  to  a  great  size  and  sold  to  the 
butcher  at  high  prices. 

Dutch  cattle^  which  are  supposed  to  have  entered  largely 
into  the  formation  of  the  short-horn  breed,  are  very  large 
milkers,  and  probably  the  milking  qualities  of  the  short-horns  are 
inherited  from  this  side  of  their  ancestry.  The  pure  race  (many 
of  which  have  been  recently  imported   into  this  country,  although 


THE    DAIRY.  459 

they  are  by  no  means  generally  disseminated,  nor  yet  within  the 
reach  of  common  farmers)  promises  to  the  milk  producer  perhaps 
as  good  results  as  can  be  obtained  from  the  consumption  of  his 
crops  by  the  aid  of  any  other.  The  black  and  white  cattle  which 
are  so  common  along  the  banks  of  the  Hudson  River,  and  in  other 
parts  of  the  States  of  New  York  and  New  Jersey  which  were 
originally  settled  from  Holland,  are  mainly  Dutch  in  their  origin  ; 
and  they  are  to  this  day,  as  a  rule,  great  milkers  and  excellent 
cows. 

Devoirs  and  Herefords^  although  most  valuable  for  the  produc- 
tion of  beef  and  as  working  oxen,  are  less  conspicuous  than  some 
of  the  other  breeds  as  good  dairy  cattle. 

The  Ayrshire  is,  par  excellence^  the  milkman's  cow.  She 
is  rather  small,  perfectly  formed,  well  developed  in  every  point 
that  tends  to  the  production  of  large  quantities  of  milk,  and  of 
that  delicacy  of  organization  which  invariably  accompanies  the 
production  of  rich  milk  ;  and  whether  the  business  be  the  sale  of 
milk  or  the  manufacture  of  cheese,  she  leads  the  list  of  the  pure 
breeds,  while  for  butter  she  is  hardly,  if  at  all,  inferior  to  any 
other  in  the  quantity  produced.  Were  it  required  that  we  should 
lose  from  our  dairy  farms  all  but  one  breed  of  our  cattle,  the 
Ayrshire  should  by  all  means  be  the  one  retained  ;  for,  although 
a  large  eater,  she  converts  her  food  into  milk  more  completely 
than  does  any  other  animal. 

The  'Jersey  (often  miscalled  the  Alderney)  is,  essentially,  a 
butter  cow.  The  quantity  of  milk  given  is  very  much  less 
than  that  of  the  Ayrshires,  Short-horns,  and  Dutch  cattle,  and 
the  production  of  a  large  quantity  of  milk  is  by  many  breeders 
of  Jersevs  considered  by  no  means  an  advantage.  The  propor- 
tion of  cream  contained  in  the  milk,  the  richness  of  the  cream 
itself,  and  the  completeness  with  which  the  butter-forming 
elements  of  the  food  are  converted,  mark  the  Jersey  as  the  most 
profitable,  and  in  all  respects  the  most  satisfactory  animal  for  but- 
ter farms.  While  the  average  production  of  cream  from  the  milk 
of  ordinary  cows  is  about  12  1-2  per  cent.,  that  of  the  Jersey's 
produces  generally  about  20,  and  sometimes  even  25  per  cent., — - 


460  HANDY -BO  OK    OF    II  USB  AN  DRY. 

the  cream  at  the  same  time  producing  more  ounces  of  butter  to 
the  quart. 

An  experiment  was  rccentiv  tried,  with  a  view  to  testing  thisques- 
tion,  with  three  pure-bred  Jersey  cows,  three  grades,  (one  one-half, 
one  three-quarters,  and  one  seven-eighths  Jersey,)  and  three  native 
animals.  All  were  in  about  equallv  good  condition,  having  run 
about  the  same  average  length  of  time  since  calving,  and  all  were 
fed  in  precisely  the  same  manner.  It  was  found  that  while  it 
required  eleven  quarts  of  the  milk  of  the  "native  "  cows  to  make 
a  pound  of  butter,  and  eight  and  a  quarter  quarts  of  the  milk  of  the 
grades,  a  pound  of  much  better  butter  was  made  from  six  and  one- 
third  quarts  of  the  milk  of  the  Jerscvs.  The  difference  in  the 
amount  of  food  was  considerable, — that  of  the  pure  Jersevs  being 
the  least  of  all.  The  number  of  quarts  of  milk,  of  course,  was  much 
less  in  the  case  of  the  Jersevs  than  ot  the  grades,  and  in  the  case 
of  the  grades  than  of  the  "natives  ;"  but  the  general  result  estab- 
lished the  fact  that  a  given  quantity  of  butter  was  produced  by  the 
Jersey  cattle  by  the  consumption  of  less  food  than  the  others 
required.  Being  smaller  animals,  less  was  required  to  main- 
tain their  ordinary  vital  functions.  There  recently  came  to 
my  notice  the  case  of  a  pure  Jersey  cow  that,  during  her 
prime,  for  eight  weeks  in  succession  produced  sixteen  pounds 
of  butter  per  week.  The  late  Mr.  John  T.  Norton,  of  Farm- 
ington,  Connecticut,  keeping  quite  a  large  herd  of  pure  Jersey 
cows,  found  that  they  yielded  a  yearly  average  of  somewhat 
more  than  two  hundred  pounds  of  butter  each.  While  these 
animals  are  noted  for  the  production  of  large  quantities  of  rich 
butter,  thev  are  comparatively  valueless  for  the  cheese  dairy,  and 
still  more  so  for  the  selling  of  milk. 

These  pure  breeds  are  in  the  main  the  originators  of  the  dairy 
animals  of  the  United  States  ;  yet  there  are  very  few  dairies  in  the 
whole  country  that  are  supplied  only  with  pure  stock,  the  pure 
breeding  being  almost  exclusively  in  the  hands  of  those  who 
make  the  sale  of  thoroughbred  animals,  at  high  prices,  a  con- 
siderable item  of  their  business.  But  the  demand  on  which 
their  high  prices  are  based  is  largely  for  the  use  of  thoroughbred 


THK    DAIRY.  461 

animals  in  improving  the  stock  of  common  farms  ;  and  it  is  fast 
coming  to  be  understood  that,  while  for  ordinary  purposes  there  is 
not,  perhaps,  a  great  advantage  in  favor  of  pure  breeding,  there  is 
a  decided  advantage  in  the  infusion  of  a  large  proportion  of  the 
blood  of  some  well-defined  race,  into  the  mixed  breeds  kept  for 
various  dairy  purposes;  and  while  it  is  not  seldom  that  we  Imd  a 
common  or  "native"  cow  that,  both  in  the  production  of  milk,  and 
cheese,  and  of  butter,  is  in  all  respects  as  good  as  ordinary  speci- 
mens of  the  pure  breeds,  it  is  a  general  truth  that  the  larger  the 
proportion  of  a  thoroughbred  strain  that  we  are  able  to  introduce 
into  our  common  herds,  the  better  will  be  the  general  results,  and, 
what  is  incidentally  of  great  ad\'antage,  the  more  uniform  will  be 
their  character,  and  the  more  will  they  come  under  the  influence 
of  a  regularly  established  and  methodical  system  of  treatment. 

It  is  a  well-established  principle  in  cross-breeding,  not  only 
with  cows,  but  with  all  domestic  animals,  from  horses  to  poultry, 
that  the  purity  of  blood  should  be  on  the  side  of  the  sire  ;  and 
by  a  proper  observance  of  this  principle  we  mav,  within  two  or 
three  generations,  bring  the  general  characteristics  of  our  herds  to 
a  tolerably  close  conformity  with  the  thoroughbred  standard.  The 
physiological  reason  for  this  influence  is  supposed  to  be,  that,  by  a 
long  course  of  careful  breeding,  certain  desirable  qualities  have  be- 
come so  established  in  the  race, — such  a  "fixity  of  type"  has  been 
created,  —  that  the  pure  blood,  crossed  with  animals  of  less  marked 
peculiarities,  has,  so  to  speak,  a  greater  impetus,  and  exercises 
a  more  powerful  influence  ovc  the  progeny.  A  dozen  native 
cows  of  varying  form,  color,  and  qualitv,  crossed  with  a  pure 
Devon  bull,  would  produce  calves  possessing  very  generally  the 
characteristics  of  the  Devon  race  ;  and  after  the  second  or  third 
generation  reversals  to  the  common  type  would  be  comparatively 
rare. 

Therefore,  if  it  is  determined  by  a  farmer  that  any  one  of  the  pure 
races  of  dairy  animals  possesses  tor  his  purposes  decided  advan- 
tages, it  is  within  his  power,  simply  by  the  use  of  vigorous  males 
of  that  race,  to  establish  throughout  his  herd,  within  a  very  few 
years,  most,  if  not  all,  of  the  desirable  dairy  qualities  of  the  pure 


462  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

breed  ;  and  not  unfrequently  there  will  be  retained  the  size,  sound- 
ness, and  adaptability  to  the  climate  and  soil  of  the  district,  which 
the  common-bred  herd  possessed  in  marked  degree.  Of  course,  in 
securing  the  good  qualities  of  two  classes  of  animals,  there  is  always 
the  risk  of  perpetuating  their  bad  qualities  as  well  ;  and  attention 
should  always  be  given  to  the  avoidance  of  individual  elements  of 
weakness,  on  the  side  of  both  the  sire  and  the  dam,  for  it  is  a 
well-known  fact  in  breeding  that  defects  are  transmitted  quite  as 
surely  as  are  good  qualities. 

As  to  the  general  hardiness  of  constitution,  including  good 
appetite,  cheerful  spirits,  and  ability  to  withstand  the  rigors  of 
inclement  seasons,  so  great  is  the  flexibility  of  nature  that  I  doubt 
if  very  much  is  to  be  said  in  favor  of  any  particular  race  or  breed. 
Treated  in  the  same  manner,  all  of  the  breeds  of  dairy  cattle,  pro- 
vided, of  course,  that  they  are  not  exposed  to  undue  hardships, 
will  be  found  to  be  about  equal  in  this  respect.  It  was  for  a  long 
time  a  popular  objection  to  the  Jerseys,  that  their  delicacy  of  con- 
formation and  texture  unfitted  them  for  use  in  our  more  Northern 
States.  But  the  universal  success  that  has  attended  their  establish- 
ment in  eastern  Massachusetts,  (in  probably  the  worst  climate  on 
the  Atlantic  coast,)  where  they  were  introduced  more  than  twenty 
years  ago,  and  where  not  only  has  the  original  stock  been  bred 
pure,  but  almost  yearly  fresh  importations  have  been  added  to 
them,  demonstrates  the  fact  that  this  objection  is  a  purely  imagi- 
nary one.  Jerseys,  although  originating  in  the  moderate  and 
humid  climate  of  the  English  Channel,  support  as  well  the  rigors 
of  our  winters  as  the  Ayrshires  of  Scotland  do  ;  and  there  is  no 
doubt  that  the  still  more  delicate  animals  of  the  Azores,  with  the 
aid  of  judicious  care  in  their  first  introduction,  would  compare 
favorably  with  our  native  animals  in  their  ability  to  withstand  the 
effect  of  the  weather.  The  immense  herds  of  animals  brought 
yearly  from  Texas  to  pass  their  winters  in  the  open  air  in  the 
cold  Northwest,  sufficiently  establish  the  soundness  of  the  fore 
going  opinion.  The  Short-horn,  a  short  and  fine-haired  animal, 
which  seems  especially  adapted  to  the  soil  and  climate  of  Kentucky, 
is  nowhere  raised  in  greater  perfection  than  high  among  the  moun- 


TUE    DAIRY.  4G3 

tains  of  Berkshire  County,  Massachusetts  ;  and  the  thin-skinned 
Ayrshires  thrive  remarkably  in  every  part  of  the  North. 

Of  course,  every  good  animal,  whether  of  an  imported  or  of  the 
native  stock,  requires  comfortable  shelter  during  the  winter  season 
or  it  must  suffer  in  proportion  to  its  exposure.  The  scrub 
races  of  the  poor  farming  of  our  cold  Northern  hills  which  have 
through  many  generations  developed  into  any  thing  but  good 
animals,  might  be  improved  bv  being  brought  under  better 
treatment  ;  and  there  is  no  doubt  that  any  good  native  or  foreign 
animal,  subjected  to  the  treatment  under  which  these  have  been 
bred,  would  soon  deteriorate  into  a  scrub,  or  would  die  in  the  early 
effort.  Dairy  animals  all  require  a  certain  protection  and  care  ; 
but  it  is  doubtful  whether  that  which  is  suited  to  those  that  are 
apparently  the  most  hardy,  is  not  equally  applicable  to  those  of 
more  delicate  appearance.  It  may  be  said,  with  reference  to  all 
breeds  of  dairy  cattle,  that  they  are,  to  a  very  large  extent,  an 
artificial  production.  The  effect  of  their  long  domestication,  the 
constant  object  having  been  to  procure  as  large  an  amount  as 
possible  of  milk,  cheese,  and  butter,  has  been  to  stimulate  to  a 
great  extent  a.  single  characteristic,  which,  in  a  state  of  nature, 
is  only  so  far  developed  as  the  nutrition  of  the  calf  renders  neces- 
sary. In  the  wild  state  the  cow  gives  but  little  milk  at  any  time, 
and  none  at  all  during  the  greater  part  of  the  year.  The  effect 
of  domestication  has  been  to  very  greatly  increase  both  the  quantity 
and  duration  of  the  vield,  so  that  now  the  chief  energies  of  the 
animal's  organization  are  devoted  simply  to  the  production  of 
milk.  And  in  all  of  our  operations,  both  of  breeding  and  feeding, 
the  object  of  still  further  developing  this  qualitv  should  be  kept 
constantly  in  mind.  In  addition  to  the  control  over  the  character 
of  our  herds  that  the  simple  element  of  "  blood  "  gives  us,  a  very 
important  influence  is  also  exercised  by  the  circumstances  under 
which  they  are  kept,  and  especiallv  by  the  abundance  and  quality 
of  their  food.  It  may  be  set  down  as  a  general  rule,  that  the  ani- 
mals of  rich  countries  are  large,  and  those  of  poor  countries  are 
small  ;  and  even  a  few  generations'  breeding  on  a  rich  farm  will 
considerably  increase  the  size  of  the  smaller  races,  while  in  a  few 
SO 


4G4  IIAXDY-BOOK    OF    UUSBAXDRY. 

generations  on  poor  land  the  size  of  the  larger  breeds  will  be 
cciualiy  reduced.  Thus  nature  is  constantly  seeking  to  bring 
about  a  due  conformity  between  the  soil  and  the  herds  feeding 
upon  it.  It  would  be  useless,  therefore,  to  attempt  to  raise  any 
herd  to  its  highest  pitch  of  excellence,  no  matter  how  pure  the 
breed  might  be,  unless  at  the  same  time  the  proportion  and 
quality  of  food  required  by  the  perfect  animal  of  the  breed, 
were  regularly  supplied.  Either  we  should  too  greatly  increase 
the  tendency  to  fat  and  to  large  development  on  the  one  hand,  or 
we  should  too  much  reduce  these  on  the  other.  Having  adopted 
the  type  that  we  wish  to  attain  in  breeding,  it  is  necessary  always 
to  adjust  the  quality  and  quantity  of  the  food  to  its  preserva- 
tion or  improvement.  By  too  great  an  increase  of  size  and 
tendency  to  fatten  we  may  reduce  the  milking  qualities  ;  or  by 
stinted  feeding  we  may  so  enfeeble  the  constitution  as  to  destroy 
the  especial  quality  on  which  our  preference  for  a  given  breed  has 
been  based.  This  question  of  breeding  furnishes  in  itself  ample 
material  for  a  larger  book  than  this,  and  it  would  be  improper  to 
enter  here  more  fully  into  its  discussion.  The  few  hints  already 
given  should  sufBce  to  induce  any  thoughtful  farmer  to  study 
carefully  the  principles  set  forth  in  more  elaborate  works  on  the 
subject. 

THE    SELECTION    OF    MILCH    COWS, 

In  the  selection  of  milch  cows  care  should  be  given,  in  the  first 
instance,  to  those  general  characteristics  of  the  dairy  animal  which 
are  permanent  in  all  breeds,  and  which  are  the  universal  indica- 
tions, the  world  over,  of  good  milkers.  The  following  statement 
by  Mr.  Flint  very  well  covers  the  more  important  points  of  the 
case  : — * 

"  In  order  to  have  no  superfluous  flesh,  the  cow  should  have  a 
"  small,  clean,  and  rather  long  head,  tapering  toward  the  muzzle. 
*■'■  A  cow  with  a  large,  coarse  head,  will  seldom  fatten  readily,  or 
'■*'  give  a  large  quantity  of  milk.  A  coarse  head  increases  the  pro- 
"  portion  of  weight  of  the  least   valuable  parts,  while  it  is  a  sure 

*  Milch  Cuws  and  Dairy  Farming.      By  Charles  L.  Flint.      Boston:   1867. 


THE    DAIRY.  4G5 

"  indication  that  the  whole  bony  structure  is  too  heavy.  The  mouth 
''  should  be  large  and  broad  ;  the  eye  bright  and  sparkling,  but  of 
"  a  peculiar  placidness  of  expression,  with  no  indication  of  wildness, 
"  but  rather  a  mild  and  feminine  look.  These  points  will  indicate 
"  gentleness  of  disposition.  Such  cows  seem  to  like  to  be  milked, 
"■  are  fond  of  being  caressed,  and  often  return  caresses.  The 
"  horns  should  be  small,  short,  tapering,  yellowish,  and  glistening. 
"  The  neck  should  be  small,  thin,  and  tapering  toward  the  head, 
"  but  thickening  when  it  approaches  the  shoulders  ;  the  dewlaps 
"  small.  The  fore-quarters  should  be  rather  small  when  com- 
"  pared  with  the  hind-quarters.  The  form  of  the  barrel  will  be 
"  l^''g^5  ^"^  each  rib  should  project  further  than  the  preceding 
"  one,  up  to  the  loins.  She  should  be  well-formed  across  the 
"  hips  and  in  the  rump. 

"The  spine,  or  backbone,  should  be  straight  and  long,  rather 
"  loosely  hung,  or  open  along  the  middle  part,  the  result  of  the 
"distance  between  the  dorsal  vertebrae,  which  sometimes  causes  a 
"  slight  depression,  or  sway  back.  By  some  good  judges  this 
"  mark  is  regarded  as  of  great  importance,  especially  when  the 
"bones  of  the  hind-quarters  are  also  rather  loosely  put  together, 
"leaving  the  rump  of  great  width,  and  the  pelvis  large,  and  the 
"  organs  and  milk-vessels  lodged  in  the  cavities  largely  developed. 
"  The  skin  over  the  rump  should  be  loose  and  flexible.  This 
"  point  is  of  great  importance  ;  and  as,  when  the  cow  is  in  low 
"  condition,  or  very  poor,  it  will  appear  somewhat  harder  and 
"  closer  than  it  otherwise  would,  some  practice  and  close  observ- 
"  ation  are  required  to  judge  well  of  this  mark.  The  skin,  indeed, 
"all  over  the  body,  should  be  soft  and  mellow  to  the  touch  with 
"  soft  and  glossy  hair.  The  tail,  if  thick  at  the  setting  on,  should 
"  taper  and  be  nne  below. 

"  But  the  udder  is  of  special  importance.  It  should  be  large  in 
"  proportion  to  the  size  of  the  animal,  and  the  skin  thin,  with  soft 
"loose  folds  extending  well  back,  capable  of  great  distention  when 
"  filled,  but  shrinking  to  a  small  compass  when  entirely  empty.  It 
"  must  be  free  from  lumps  in  everv  part,  and  provided  with  four 
"  teats  set  well  apart,  and  of  medium  size.      Nor  are  the  milk- 


4G6  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"  veins  less  important  to  be  carefully  observed.     The  princ'pal 

"  ones  under  the  belly  should  be  large  and  prominent,  and  extend 
"  forward  to  the  navel,  losing  thembclves,  apparently,  in  the  very 
"  best  milkers,  in  a  large  cavity  in  the  flesh,  into  which  the 
"  end  of  the  finger  can  be  inserted  ;  but  when  the  cow  is  not 
''  in  full  milk,  the  milk-vein,  at  other  times  very  prominent,  is  not 
*'  so  distinctly  traced  ;  and  hence,  to  judge  of  its  size  when  the 
"  cow  is  drv,  or  nearly  so,  this  vein  may  be  pressed  near  its  end, 
"  or  at  its  entrance  into  tbe  body,  when  it  will  immediately  fill  up 
*'  to  its  full  size.  This  vein  does  not  carry  the  milk  to  the  udder, 
"  as  some  suppose,  but  is  the  channel  by  which  the  blood  returns  ; 
*' and  its  contents  consist  of  the  refuse  of  the  secretion,  or  what 
^'  has  not  been  taken  up  in  forming  milk.  There  are,  also,  veins 
"  in  the  udder  and  the  perineum,  or  the  space  above  the  udder, 
''and  between  that  and  the  buttocks,  which  it  is  of  special  iniport- 
"ance  to  observe.  These  veins  should  be  largely  developed,  and 
"  irregular  or  knotted,  especially  those  of  the  udder.  They  are 
"  largest  in  great  milkers. 

"  1  he  knotted  veins  of  the  perineum,  extending  from  above 
"  downward  in  a  winding  line,  are  not  readily  seen  in  young  heif- 
"  ers,  and  are  very  difficult  to  find  in  poor  cows,  or  cows  of  only 
"  a  medium  quality.  They  are  easily  found  in  very  good  milkers, 
"  and  if  not  at  first  apparent,  they  are  made  so  by  pressing  upon 
"them  at  the  base  of  the  perineum,  when  they  swell  up,  and  send 
"  the  blood  back  toward  the  vulva.  They  form  a  kind  of  thick 
"  net-work  under  the  skin  of  the  perineum,  raising  it  up  somewhat, 
"  in  some  cases  near  the  vulva,  in  others  lower  down  and  nearer  to 
"  the  udder.  It  is  important  to  look  for  these  veins,  as  they  often 
"  form  a  very  important  guide,  and  by  some  they  would  be  con- 
"  sidered  as  furnishing  the  surest  indications  of  the  milking  qual- 
"  ities  of  the  cow.  Their  full  development  almost  always  indicates 
"an  abundant  secretion  of  milk  ;  but  they  are  far  better  developed 
"  after  the  cow  has  had  two  or  three  calves,  when  two  or  three 
"years'  milking  has  gi\en  full  activity  to  the  milkv  glands,  and 
"  attracted  a  large  flow  of  blood.  The  larger  and  more  promi- 
"  nent  these  veins,  the  better.     It  is  needless  to  say,  that  in  observ- 


THE    DAIRY.  467 

"ing  them  some  regard  should  be  had  to  the  condition  of  the  cow, 
"  the  thickness  of  skin  and  fat  bv  which  they  may  be  surrounded 
"and  the  general   activity  and   food  of  the  animal.      Food  calcu- 
"lated  to  stimulate  the  greatest  flow  of  milk  will  naturally  increase 
"these  veins,  and  give  them  more  than  usual  prominence." 

Flint  gives  the  following  description  of  the  characteristics  of  the 
Ayrshire  cow  : — 

*  *  *      "  In   color,   the    pure    Ayrshires    are   generally 

"  red  and  white,  spotted,  or  mottled,  not  roan  like  many  of  the 
"  short  horns,  but  often  presenting  a  bright  contrast  of  colors. 
"  They  are  sometimes,  though  rarely,  nearly  or  quite  all  red,  and 
"  sometimes  black  and  white  ;  but  the  favorite  color  is  red  and 
"  white  brightly  contrasted,  and  by  some,  strawberry-color  is  pre- 
"  ferred.  The  head  is  small,  fine,  and  clean  ;  the  face  long  and 
"narrow  at  the  muzzle,  with  a  sprightly  yet  generally  mild  ex- 
"  pression  ;  eye  small,  smart,  and  lively  ;  the  horns  short,  fine, 
"  and  slightly  twisted  upward,  set  wide  apart  at  the  roots  ;  the 
"  neck  thin  ;  body  enlarging  from  fore  to  hind  quarters  ;  the  back 
"  straight  and  narrow,  but  broad  across  the  loin  ;  joints  rather 
"loose  and  open;  ribs  rather  flat  ;  hind-quarters  rather  thin  ;  bone 
"  fine  ;  tail  long,  fine  and  bushy  at  the  end  ;  hair  generally  thin 
"  and  soft  ;  udder  light  color  and  capacious,  extending  well  for- 
"  ward  under  the  belly  ;  teats  of  the  cow  of  medium  size,  gener- 
"ally  set  regularly  and  wide  apart  ;  milk-veins  prominent  and  well 
"  developed.  The  carcass  of  the  pure-bred  Ayrshire  is  light, 
"  particularly  the  fore-quarters,  which  is  considered  by  good 
"judges  as  an  index  of  great  milking-qualities,  but  the  pelvis  is 
"capacious  and  wide  over  the  hips." 

Concerning  the  points  of  the  Jeisey  cow,  the  following  is  copied 
from  the  scale  of  points  established  by  the  Royal  Jersey  Agricul- 
tural Society,  and  is  the  standard  of  the  best  breeding;  of  that  island 
for  many  years  : — 

¥  *  *     ci  Y'he    head   of   the    pure    Jersey    is   fine   and 

"  tapering,  the  cheek  small,  the  throat  clean,  the  muzzle  fine, 
"and  encircled  with  a  light  stripe,  the  nostril  high  and  open  ;  the 
"horns  smooth  and  crumpled,  not  very  thick  at  the  base,  taper- 


468  nAN'DY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"  ing,  and  tipped  with  black  ;  ears  small  and  thin,  deep  orange- 
"  color  inside;  eves  full  and  placid;  neck  straight  and  fine;  chest 
"  broad  and  deep  ;  barrel  hooped,  broad  and  deep,  well  ribbed 
"  up  ;  back  straight  from  the  withers  to  the  hip,  and  from  the 
"top  of  the  hip  to  the  setting  on  of  the  tail  ;  tail  fine,  at  right 
^'angles  with  the  back,  and  hanging  down  to  the  hocks;  skin 
'^'thin,  light  color,  and  mellow,  covered  with  fine  soft  hair;  fore 
"  legs  short,  straight,  and  fine  below  the  knee,  arm  swelling  and 
"  {ull  above  ;  hindquarters  long  and  well  filled;  hind  legs  short 
"  and  straight  below  the  hocks,  with  bones  rather  fine,  squarely 
"  placed,  and  not  too  close  together  ;  hoofs  small ;  udder  full  in 
"size,  in  line  with  the  be.ly,  extending  well  up  behind  ;  teats  of 
"  medium  size,  squarely  placed  and  wide  apart,  and  milk-veins 
"  very  prominent." 

Much  attention  has  been  paid  during  a  few  years  past  to  what 
is  known  as  the  Milk  Mirror  or  Escutcheon.  The  relation 
between  this  and  the  capacity  for  milk  was  discovered  by 
Mr.  Guenon,  a  native  of  the  south  of  France,  whose  early  life 
was  passed  in  the  care  of  a  herd  of  cows.  Being  a  close  observer 
of  nature,  an  excellent  judge  of  cattle,  and  a  man  of  great  natural 
sagacity,  he  established,  after  many  years  of  investigation,  a  sys- 
tem by  which  he  claimed  to  be  able  to  determine  the  quantity  of 
the  yield,  its  duration,  and  the  quality  of  the  milk  for  the  manu- 
facture of  butter,  by  what  he  called  the  "  Escutcheon."  He 
received  a  gold  medal  from  the  Agricultural  Society  of  Bordeaux, 
in  1837,  as  a  recognition  of  the  value  of  his  discovery;  and 
although  many  of  the  details  of  the  intricate  system  established 
by  him  have  failed  of  general  adoption,  the  general  principle  on 
which  his  system  is  based  is  of  so  much  value  that  it  is  often 
taken  as  an  important  criterion  in  the  selection  of  dairy  animals. 

The  Milk  Mirror  is  the  upward-growing  hair  on  the  back  part 
of  the  udder  and  the  inside  of  the  hind  legs.  An  examination  of 
any  cow  will  show  that  the  line  where  this  hair  meets  the  down- 
ward-growing hair  of  the  immediately  adjacent  parts  of  the  body,  is 
well  defined  by  what  is  called  a  "quirl,"  and  the  hair  included  with- 
in the  quirl  and  covered  by  the  upward-growing  hair  is  the  Milk 


THE    DAIRY.  4(J9 

Mirror.  The  shape  of  the  Mirror  is  very  different  in  different  races, 
and  generally  assumes  one  of  two  or  three  different  forms.  For 
details  concerning  this  subject  the  reader  is  referred  to  well-known 
publications  in  which  it  is  set  forth.  For  the  purposes  of  this 
chapter  it  will  be  sufficient  to  say,  in  general  terms,  that,  as  a  gen- 
eral rule,  the  size  of  the  mirror  bears  a  pretty  constant  proportion 
to  the  amount  of  the  yield  of  milk  ;  and  while  it  is  true  that  this 
indication  of  great  milking  qualities,  in  those  cases  where  it  is  a 
reliable  indication,  accompanies  such  other  general  characteristics 
as  of  themselves  indicate  good  milkers,  at  the  same  time  it  is  one 
which  is  so  easily  studied,  that  it  constitutes  perhaps  the  simplest 
indication  of  the  general  dairy  qualities  of  any  individual  animal. 

The  great  value  of  Guenon's  system  depends  on  the  fact  that 
in  calves  which,  neither  by  the  texture  of  their  hides  nor  the  con- 
formation of  their  bodies,  nor,  indeed,  by  any  of  the  general 
marks  on  which  we  depend  in  the  selection  of  dairy  animals,  give 
any  indication  of  their  future  milking  qualities,  it  is  possible  by  a 
sole  dependence  on  the  character  of  the  escutcheon  to  predict 
with  considerable  certainty  their  future  usefulness  for  the  dairy. 
Of  course,  owing  to  the  slight  dexelopment  of  the  udder,  the 
escutcheon  is  always  very  much  smaller,  even  in  proportion  to  the 
size  of  the  animal,  than  in  the  milch  cow  ;  yet  the  different  pro- 
portions that  the  escutcheons  of  two  calves  bear  to  their  size  are 
an  excellent  general  indication  of  their  future  usefulness  ;  and  any 
farmer  who  will  carefully  study  this  peculiarity  of  his  animals  dur- 
ing the  various  stages  of  their  growth,  with  the  assistance  of  the 
plates  laid  down  in  Guenon's  book  (also  to  be  found  in  Mr. 
Flint's  work),  will  arrive  at  a  tolerably  accurate  means  of  judging 
of  the  value  of  full-grown  animals  that  it  is  contemplated  to  pur- 
chase, and  of  the  calves  that  his  own  herd  produces 

THE    FEEDING    AND    MANAGEMENT    OF     DAIRY    COWS. 

In  the  chapter  on  "Winter  Feeding  and  Management"  the 
subject  of  the  treatment  of  milch  cows  is  considered  at  length, 
and  a  general  reference  to  it  will  be  found  in  the  chapter  on 
"Soiling  and  Pasturing."      It  may  be  well,  however,  in  this  con- 


470  HAXDY-BOOK     OF     HUSBANDRY. 

nection,  to  insist  on  the  importance  of  an  exact  adaptation  of  the 
means  used  to  the  end  desired  to  be  obtained.  The  following 
general  principles  should  never  be  lost  sight  of: — 

I.  To  keep  the  cow  always  in  a  thrifty,  healthy  condition, 
and  with  a  voracious  appetite.  The  great  end  of  her  life, 
the  production  of  milk,  cannot  be  perfectly  accomplished  unless 
she  is  comfortable  and  cheerful,  and  unless  she  consumes  the 
largest  amount  of  food  that  it  is  possible  for  her  to  take 
into  her  stomach  without  injury  to  her  health.  She  should 
be  regarded  as  an  agricultural  implement — as  a  mill,  in  which 
we  grind  up  fodder  and  roots  and  grain  for  the  purpose  of 
turning  out  as  large  a  quantity  of  dairy  products  as  that  food  is 
capable  of  producing.  For  the  same  reason  that  it  would  be  un- 
profitable to  keep  an  expensive  grist-mill  running  on  half-work,  so 
it  is  unprofitable  to  keep  a  cow  in  such  a  way  that  she  will  turn 
into  milk  and  butter  only  a  part  of  the  food  that  her  organs  are 
capable  of  so  turning.  Up  to  a  certain  point  every  ounce  of  food 
given  is  appropriated  for  the  supply  of  the  natural  wastes  of  the 
body,  and  for  the  production  of  animal  heat.  It  is  only  after  this 
universal  demand  has  been  supplied  that  surplus  production 
becomes  possible.  We  will  suppose,  by  way  of  illustration,  that 
a  cow  is  capable  of  consuming  lOO  pounds  a  day  of  hay,  grain, 
and  roots,  and  that  twenty-five  pounds  a  day  would  be  sufficient 
to  maintain  her  in  good,  healthy  condition.  By  dryin^  off  her 
milk  we  could  carry  her  through  the  winter  in  good  condition  on 
twenty-five  pounds  of  food  per  day.  But  from  the  consumption 
of  this  food  we  should  have  gained  literally  nothing  beyond  a 
small  quantity  of  manure.  In  order  to  obtain  any  profit  from  her 
keep,  it  is  necessary  that  she  be  fed  more  than  this  twenty-five 
pounds  a  day,  and  pretty  nearly  the  whole  amount  in  excess  of  this 
contributes  to  the  yield  of  milk  and  its  products.  Therefore,  the 
greater  the  amount  of  food  that  we  can  induce  her  to  con- 
sume, the  greater  the  proportion  of  profit  resulting  from  the 
operation.  And  herein  lies  the  chief  argument  against  overstock- 
ing, that  is,  the  keeping  of  more  animals  than  we  can  feed  in 
the  most  liberal  manner.      For  while  four  cows  would,  under  the 


THE    DAIRY.  471 

foregoing  hypothesis,  be  kept  in  good  condition  on  lOO  pounds 
of  food  per  day  without  profit,  two  cows  consuming  the  same 
amount  would  yield  a  considerable  profit,  and  one  cow  would 
yield  still  more. 

2.  To  adjust  the  character  of  the  food  to  the  end  it  is  desired 
to  attain.  That  is  to  say,  if  milk  is  to  be  sold,  the  food  should 
be  of  such  a  character  as  to  stimulate  as  much  as  possible  the 
production  of  quantity,  and,  incidentally,  to  induce  the  drinking  of 
a  large  amount  of  water  ;  while,  if  it  be  the  object  to  make  butter, 
the  food  should  be  less  watery  in  its  character  and  much  richer  in 
quality — richer  chiefly  in  fat-forming  substances  ;  although  even 
with  butter-cows,  the  fact  should  be  constantly  borne  in  mind 
that  the  assimilation  by  the  digestive  organs  of  fat-forming  ma- 
terials, such  as  sugar,  starch,  vegetable  oils,  etc.,  bears  a  very 
close  relation  to  the  amount  of  nitrogenous  or  flesh-and-cheese- 
forming  matter  that  the  food  contains.  The  principle  in  this 
case  is,  that  if  a  bushel  of  food  contain  twenty  pounds  of  starch, 
this  starch  will  not  be  assimilated  unless  accompanied  by  so  much 
gluten  or  albumen  as  must  necessarily  be  taken  up  by  the  animal 
in  the  digestion  of  so  much  starch.  The  proportion  between  the 
nitrogenous  food  required  and  that  of  a  fat-forming  character,  is 
not  constant  in  all  animals,  but  depends  more  or  less  on  the  extent 
to  which  they  yield  or  waste  their  flesh  or  fat.  Working  animals 
wasting  in  their  economy  a  large  amount  of  flesh-forming  material, 
would  assimilate  less  starch  in  proportion  to  the  quantity  of  this 
than  would  milch  cows,  with  whom  the  production  of  fat  in 
cream  is  very  great.  Experiments  on  which  to  base  definite 
directions  on  this  subject  are  wanting  ;  and  in  their  absence  the 
farmer  must  be  guided  largely  by  his  own  observation  ;  and  under 
the  best  circumstances  he  will  generally  fail  to  establish  the  most 
economical  proportion  between  the  two  constituents  of  food  ;  but 
there  is  no  doubt  that  he  may,  by  a  proper  attention  to  the  princi- 
ple, add  materially  to  the  economy  of  his  operations. 

3.  To  pay  attention  to  the  fact  that  pregnant  animals,  in  addi- 
tion to  the  demand  which  the  secretion  of  milk  makes  upon  their 
digestive  organs,  require  a  certain  quantity  of  food,  and    food   of 


472  II  A  N  D  Y  -  B 0  0  K    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

the  most  nutritious  character,  for  the  development  of  the  foetus  ; 
and  that  they  must  not  be  allowed  to  become  so  fat,  nor  to  get 
into  such  a  stimulated  and  feverish  condition  as  to  render  the  pro- 
cess of  parturition  dangerous. 

4.  To  so  feed  the  stock  that  the  manure  heap  shall  be  made  as 
rich  as  is  consistent  with  profitable  feeding. 

The  details  of  the  stable  work  should  receive  much  more  atten- 
tion than  farmers  usually  give  them.  Above  all  should  every 
operation  be  conducted  with  perfect  regularity  and  system,  and  in 
a  quiet  and  orderly  manner.  Neither  boisterous  actions,  singing, 
nor  unnecessarily  loud  talking  should  be  allowed  to  disturb  that 
tranquillity  which  is  more  conducive  than  is  any  thing  else  to  the 
successful  keeping  of  milch  cows.  Not  only  should  all  of  the 
utensils  used  for  receiving  and  carrying  milk  be  kept  perfectly 
sweet  and  clean,  but  the  stable  itself  should  be  kept  as  clean  as 
a  stable  can  be,  should  be  thoroughly  well  ventilated,  and  should 
be  light  and  cheerful.  Food  and  water  should  be  given  b\'  the 
clock  at  unvarying  hours  ;  and  the  hours  of  milking  should  be  as 
punctually  adhered  to  as  is  the  dinner  hour  of  the  farmer  himself. 

These  details  are  often  regarded  by  the  farmer  as  minor  and 
unimportant.  Minor  they  undoubtedly  are,  but  their  importance 
is  much  greater  than  is  commonly  supposed.  The  fact  should  be 
considered  that  proper  attention  to  them  adds  nothing,  or  com- 
paratively nothing,  to  the  expenses  of  the  business  ;  and  that 
even  a  slight  benefit  resulting  from  them  is  to  be  passed  entirely 
to  the  side  of  profit.  But  ordinarily  the  benefit  will  be  by  no 
means  slight.  Cows  fed  at  irregular  hours,  spend  much  of  their 
time  in  a  state  of  worrying  expectancy.  Either  they  eat  or  drink 
too  little,  owing  to  the  short  interval  that  has  elapsed,  or  the 
shaf^p  edge  is  taken  off  of  their  appetites  by  too  long  waiting,  while 
that  regular  secretion  of  milk,  which  ought,  in  animals  of  full 
flow,  to  accomplish  the  complete  distention  of  the  udder  at  ex- 
actly the  time  when  the  milking  is  to  be  done,  is  very  much 
disturbed,  and  the  completeness  of  the  secretion  permanently 
injured  by  too  great  distention  at  one  time  and  too  little  at  another. 
It  is  generally  stated   that  it  is  better  that  milking  should  be  done 


THE    DAIRY.  473 

by  women  than  by  men  or  boys  -,  and  owing  to  the  greater  gentle- 
ness of  women  this  is  probably  true  ;  but  by  whomsoever  the 
milking  may  be  done,  it  should  be  insisted  that  under  all  circum- 
stances the  cows  shall  be  treated  with  the  utmost  tenderness,  and 
that  they  shall  not  be  agitated  by  loud  talking  and  skylarking. 
Perfect  decorum  and  absolute  silence  should  be  the  rule  of  the 
cow  stable  ;  frolicking,  music,  and  story-telling  should  be  reserved) 
for  some  other  place. 

Bearing  in  mind  the  well-known  physiological  principle  that  a 
perfect  development  of  any  organ  or  any  function  of  the  animal 
system  is  only  possible  in  a  general  condition  of  perfect  health  and 
normal  activity  of  every  organ,  much  attention  should  be  gi\en  to 
the  condition  of  the  animal's  hide.  The  transmission  of  animal 
moisture  and  the  loose  texture  of  the  skin,  which  indicate  per- 
fect hq^lth,  always  conduce  to  the  most  complete  development 
of  activity  in  the  various  departments  of  the  organism,  and  to  the 
best  adjustment  of  the  secretion  of  milk  that,  under  the  various 
circumstances  of  food,  shelter,  and  individual  capacity,  is  possible. 
At  pasture,  cows  should  be  afforded  either  natural  or  artificial 
shelter  from  the  intense  rays  of  the  sun,  should  be  undisturbed  by 
rolicking  colts,  and  unworried  by  dogs.  The  feed  should  be  am- 
ple— enough  to  enable  them  to  fill  themselves  without  undue 
labor  ;  and  there  should  be  comfortable  places  where,  unpestered 
by  flies,'  they  may  chew  their  cuds  in  quiet  contentment.  It  is 
easy,  both  in  the  stable  and  in  the  pasture,  for  every  element  of 
profitable  keeping  to  be  harassed  out  of  the  best  cow  ;  and  it  is  no 
less  important  to  keep  her  in  all  respects  in  such  condition  as  to 
be  able  to  make  the  most  of  what  she  eats,  than  it  is  to  give  her 
food  enough. 

The  question  of  exercise,  especially  during  the  winter  season,  is 
an  important  one  ;  and,  in  estimating  its  advantages,  we  should 
not  lose  sight  of  the  importance  of  maintaining  an  equal  tempera- 
ture. Many  of  the  most  successful  dairymen  in  the  countr\' keep 
their  cattle  in  the  stall  uninterruptedly,  providing  water  within  the 
building  in  order  that  the  animals  may  have  no  occasion  to  go  out 
into  the   cold  air.      I    have   in    my  mind    now  one   well-manaecd 


474  HANDY -BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

dairy,  where  nearly  fifty  pure-bred  and  high  grade  Ayrshires  are 
kept,  and  kept  in  the  most  profitable  way,  in  which  it  is  a  rule 
that,  from  the  time  of  the  first  t\ing  up  in  the  autumn  until  the 
spring  pastures  are  ready  for  use,  no  cow  shall  leave  her  stall  for 
any  purpose,  except  when  it  is  necessary  to  take  her  to  the  calving 
pen.  I  saw  this  herd  late  in  the  winter,  when  they  had  been 
tied  by  the  neck  for  four  months,  and  I  never  saw  anim;ils  in 
more  perfectly  satisfactory  condition  in  all  respects.  The  most 
perplexing  question  attending  the  proper  arrangement  of  cow 
stables  lies  in  the  apparently  contradictory  requirements  of  ven- 
tilation and  temperature.  Fresh  air  is  indispensably  necessary  to 
health  ;  a  tolerable  degree  of  warmth  is  highly  important  to  profit- 
able feeding  ;  and  while  it  should  be  the  study  of  every  farmer  to 
supply  his  animals  with  a  sufficient  amount  of  fresh  air,  he  should 
endeavor  to  do  this  with  the  least  possible  reduction  of  the  tem- 
perature of  the  stable.  The  different  means  of  ventilation,  all  of 
,  which  have  much  to  recommend  them,  may  be  selected  according 
to  the  requirements  of  individual  cases, — due  re2;ard  being  had 
chiefly  to  avoiding  the  creation  of  drafts  of  air  about  the  animals. 
The  heat  emanating  from  a  full-grown  and  healthy  animal  is 
sufficient  to  modify  the  temperature  of  the  air  by  which  she  is 
surrounded,  provided  this  be  not  too  rapidly  removed  ;  and  a  well- 
thatched  and  warm  shed,  open  to  the  leeward,  is  not  a  bad  place 
to  keep  cows  in  ordinary  weather.  Certainly  it  is  much  better 
than  a  barn,  through  the  open  doors  of  which  a  draft  of  air  is 
constantly  sweeping  across  their  backs.  It  will  be  well  to  have 
doors  or  windows  opening  from  the  stable  toward  different  points 
of  the  compass,  being  careful  to  open  only  such  as  are  not  on  the 
side  against  which  the  wind  is  blowing.  The  foul  air,  escaping 
from  the  animal's  lungs  and  from  the  decomposition  of  the  manure, 
should  be  carried  off  through  ascending  ventilators  ;  but,  as  the 
resulting  gases  of  decomposition  and  respiration  are  heavier  than 
the  atmosphere,  it  will  be  best  for  these  ventilators,  supplied  with  a 
strong  draft  at  the  cap,  to  have  their  opening  near  the  floor.  They 
will,  under  this  arrangement,  remove  very  much  less  of  the  accu- 
mulated warmth  of  the  stable  than  if  starting  from  the  ceiling. 


THE    DAIRY.  475 


MILK    AND    ITS    PRODUCTS. 


The  prime  object  in  keeping  dairy  cows  is  to  obtain  milk.  To 
this  end,  under  ordinary  circumstances,  every  thing  else  is  made  to 
yield.  The  increase  of  size,  the  production  of  calves,  the 
yielding  of  good  beef,  are  all  either  of  no  importance  or  of  very 
secondary  importance.  Every  effort  in  breeding  and  in  feeding  is 
directed  toward  the  production  of  the  largest  quantity  or  the 
richest  quality  of  milk. 

This  being  the  case  it  is  the  only  wise  policy  to  continue,  after 
the  milk  has  been  secreted  into  the  udder,  the  same  care  in  its 
drawing  and  in  its  preparation  for  market  that  have  attended  the 
treatment  of  the  animal.  Milking  should  be  done  quickly,  regu- 
larly, and  thoroughlv,  the  last  drop  being  drawn  from  the  udder 
at  each  milking;  :  since  nothino-  tends  so  much  to  cause  a  cow  to 
fall  off  in  her  yield  as  the  leaving  of  even  a  small  quantity  of 
strippings  in  the  udder.  As  the  milk  or  some  part  of  it  is  to  be 
used  as  food,  of  course  every  thing  connected  with  the  operation 
of  milking  should  be  as  cleanly  as  possible.  Not  only  should  the 
vessel  into  which  the  milk  is  drawn  be  thoroughly  clean,  but  the 
udder  and  teats  should,  if  necessary,  be  washed,  and  the  hands  of 
the  operator  should  be  free  of  offense.  Immediately  after  milking 
the  pail  should  be  taken  at  once  out  of  the  stable,  for  even  within 
a  short  time  after  the  milk  has  been  drawn,  it  may  become  tainted 
by  the  exhalations  from  the  accumulations  of  tilth  which  are  una- 
voidable even  in  the  best-regulated  stables. 

In  all  cases  milk  should  be  strained  as  soon  as  possible  after  it 
is  drawn,  should  be  either  cooled  or  warmed  or  left  at  its  natural 
temperature,  according  to  the  season,  and  the  uses  for  which  it  is 
intended.  For  instance, — if  to  be  sent  to  the  milk  dealers  in 
cities,  it  should  be  immediately' put  in  the  cans,  these  being  sur- 
rounded by  cold  water  (if  possible,  by  running  water)  so  that  the 
natural  heat  of  the  milk  may  be  withdrawn  as  rapidly  and 
thoroughly  as  possible.  If  it  is  intended  for  butter  making,  it 
should  be  set  away  in  pans,  either  at  the  natural  temperature  in 
warm  and  moderate  weather,  or  in  cold  weather  heated  to  such  a 


476  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

degree  that  the  rising  of  the  cream  will  have  commenced  before 
the  temperature  of  the  mass  is  too  greatly  reduced  for  the  operation 
to  be  carried  on  with  the  requisite  activity.  In  summer  time  milk 
intended  for  butter  should  be  set  away  in  a  cool  place,  so  that  it 
may  be  soon  reduced  to  a  degree  of  heat  that  is  not  conducive  to 
rapid  souring  ;  and  even  in  moderate  weather,  as  in  spring  and 
fall,  due  care  should  be  taken  that  it  docs  not  become  too  warm. 
The  heating  of  milk  in  winter  time  is  by  no  means  universally 
practiced,  but  where  it  is  practiced,  and  I  speak  from  my  own 
experience,  it  is  productive  of  excellent  results.  My  custom  is 
to  have  a  kettle  of  water  put  on  the  stove  at  milking  time,  and 
raised  to  the  boiling  point  by  the  time  the  milk  is  brought  to 
the  house.  Into  this  water  the  milk  pail  is  placed  and  allowed  to 
remain,  until  a  little  steam  begins  to  show  itself  over  the  surface 
of  the  milk,  the  mass  being  gently  stirred  once  or  twice  during  the 
heating.  It  is  then  strained  directly  into  pans,  and  an  amount  of 
cream  rises  within  twenty-four  hours  which,  without  the  heating, 
would  have  required  double  that  time.  I  fancy,  too,  that  the  con- 
sistency of  the  cream  is  rather  better,  its  quantity  somewhat  greater, 
and  its  color  somewhat  deeper,  while  the  firmness  of  the  butter 
is  in  no  way  reduced,  nor  is  the  product  in  any  way  injured,  e\'en 
if  it  is  not  benefited  as  I  think  that  it  is.  Alilk  for  cheese-making, 
however  it  may  be  kept  immediately  after  being  brought  in,  should 
be  artificially  raised  to  the  required  temperature  before  the  rennet 
is  added. 

As  in  the  case  of  the  selling  of  milk,  no  further  preparation  is 
necessary  than  the  early  cooling  above  alluded  to,  the  remainder 
ot  this  chapter  may  be  best  devoted  to  the  consideration  of  the 
manufacture  of  butter  and  cheese. 

BUTTER. 

Concerning  the  manufacture  of  butter  much  has  been  writ- 
ten, and  much  of  the  lore  of  local  neighborhoods  can  hardly 
be  written,  consisting  as  it  does  of  traditional  manipulations 
which  are  to  be  learned  much  better  by  experience  than 
by    reading.       Processes  in  some    respects  differ  almost  diamet- 


THE    DAIRY.  477 

rically.  As  each  may  be  presumed  to  think  that  he  has  hit 
upon  the  plan  that  is  Hkely  to  produce  the  best  results,  I 
can  hardly  do  better  than  to  detail  here  the  various  processes 
of  my  own  system  of  butter-making,  which  is  attended  with 
highly  satisfactory  results,  my  butter  usually  selling  for  consider- 
ably' more  than  the  average  of  the  highest  market-prices. 

The  milk-room  plays  a  very  important  part  in  the  manufacture 
of  butter.  It  should  be  airy  and  cool  without  being  too  cold,  and 
should  be  so  arranged  that  it  may  be  kept  at  all  times  scrupulously 
clean. 

The  spring-house,  in  common  use  in  the  dairy  regions  about 
Philadelphia,  and  which  is  almost  peculiar  to  that  part  of  the 
country,  is  admirably  adapted  for  the  purpose,  and  although 
opinions  vary  as  to  its  necessity  for  the  attainment  of  the  very 
best  results,  the  results  which,  in  good  hands,  are  obtained  with 
its  use,  are  a  strong  argument  in  its  favor,  and  it  certainly  offers 
some  advantages  over  the  system  of  dry  rooms.  A  description 
of  one  of  these  spring-houses  is  included  in  the  following  commu- 
nication that  I  made  in  1868  to  the  New  York  Evening  Post^ 
after  a  visit  to  several  dairy  farms  in  Chester  and  Delaware 
counties  : — 

"  Philadelphia  Butter. — We  took  an  evening  train  for  the  farm 
"  of  Mr.  S.  J.  Sharpless,  whose  herd  of  pure  Jerseys  feed  on  the 
"  rich  pastures  of  Chester  Countv,  and  arrived  in  time  for  the 
"  evening  milking.  It  was  a  pleasant  ending  to  our  journey  to 
"see  the  fine-skinned  and  deer-like  creatures  marching  in  regular 
"  procession  through  the  long  grass  to  the  milking-house,  imported 
"  '  Niobe  '  swaggering  along  with  her  enormous  orange-colored 
"  udder,  at  the  head  of  the  troop;  and  we  were  disposed  to  think 
"  that  with  such  a  farm  and  with  such  a  herd,  we  too  could  make 
"'  Philadelphia'  butter. 

"•  The  milking-house  is  a  light,  wooden  structure,  with  so  many 
"  open  doors  and  windows  that  it  is  hardly  more  than  a  shed.  In 
"  winter  it  is  closed  up  and  used  as  a  stable  for  young  stock.  In 
"  size  it  is  about  twenty-two  feet  by  thirty-six,  with  a  row  of 
*'  stanchions  on  each  side,  and  with  mangers  in  which  a  little  bran 


478  n  ANDY- no  OK  of  husbandry. 

*'  is  put  at  each  milking-time.  Each  cow  has  her  own  place, 
"  with  her  name,  age,  and  pedigree  over  her  manger,  and  she 
'■'■  alwa\  s  goes  to  it  as  though  she  could  read.  Their  names  have 
*■*■  been  put  up  in  the  order  in  which  they  come  from  the  pasture, 
*'  the  *■  master'  cow  entering  first  and  the  least  plucky  last. 

''  The  milking  is  done  by  women,  the  same  one  always  attend- 
"  ing  to  each  cow,  and  it  is  done  rapidly  and  quietly,  no  unneces- 
"  sary  talking  and  no  skylarking  being  allowed.  We  measured 
"  '  Niobe's'  yield  and  found  it  to  be  eleven  quarts,  (she  gave  nine 
*'  the  next  morning — making  twenty  for  the  two  milkings,)  not 
''bad  for  a  butter-making  Jersey  cow.  The  others  gave  less, — 
"  the  smallest  not  more  than  eight  quarts  at  two  milkings, — but 
"  the  whole  herd  of  eighteen  cows  could  not  have  given  less  than 
"  two  hundred  quarts  a  day,  and  this  of  milk  that  yields  over 
''  twenty  per  cent,  of  cream. 

'*  Near  by  the  milking-house  is  the  '  spring-house,'  the  institu- 
*' tion  of  this  region,  about  twenty-four  feet  long  and  eighteen  feet 
*■'■  wide,  built  of  stone,  with  its  foundation  set  deeply  in  the  hill- 
"  side,  and  its  floor  about  four  feet  below  the  level  of  the  ground 
"  at  the  down-hill  side.  The  site  is  that  of  a  plentiful  spring, 
"  which  is  allowed  to  spread  over  the  whole  of  the  inclosed  area 
'■'■  to  a  depth  of  about  three  inches  above  the  floor  of  oak,  laid 
"  on  sand  or  gravel.  At  this  height  there  is  an  over-floor  by 
*' which  the  water  passes  to  a  tank  in  an  open  shed  at  the  down- 
*'  hill  end  of  the  house.  On  the  floor  of  the  spring-house  there 
*'  are  raised  platforms  or  walks,  to  be  used  in  moving  about  the 
*■'■  room,  but  probably  three-quarters  of  the  space  is  occupied  by 
"  the  slowly-flowing  spring-water.  The  walls  are  about  ten  feet 
"  high,  and  at  the  top,  on  each  side,  are  long,  low  windows, 
*' closed  only  with  wire-cloth,  which  gives  a  circulation  of  air  at 
'*  the  upper  part  of  the  room.  The  milk  is  strained  into  deep 
'■'■  pans  of  small  diameter,  that  are  kept  well  painted  on  the 
*'  outside,  and  are  provided  with  bails  by  which  they  are 
*'  handled.  The  depth  of  the  milk  in  the  pans  is  about 
"three  inches,  and  they  are  set  directly  upon  the  oak  floor, 
"  the  water,  which  maintains  a  temperature  of  fifty-eight  degrees 


THE    DAIRY.  479 

"  Fahrenheit,  surrounding  them  to  about  the  height  of  the 
"  milk. 

"  The  cream  is  taken  ofF  after  twenty-four  hours,  and  is  kept 
"•  in  deep  vessels  having  a  capacity  of  about  twelve  gallons. 
"  These  vessels  are  not  covered,  and  as  the  room  is  scarcely 
"•  warmer  than  the  water,  the  cream  is  kept  at  about  fifty-eight  or 
"  fifty-nine  degrees,  until  it  is  put  in  the  churn. 

"  Having  inspected  the  dairy  arrangements,  we  took  our  trav- 
*'  elers'  appetites  to  the  supper-table,  where  we  were  regaled 
*'  with  such  butter  and  with  such  cream  as  only  Jersey  cows  can 
"give,  and  then  we  passed  a  long  evening  in  a  discussion  of  the 
"merits  of  the  breed  and  of  its  individual  members  which  we  had 
'*  examined  since  our  arrival  ;  and  in  devising  the  ways  and  means 
*'  for  making — by  the  aid  of  windmills  and  otherwise — such  sub- 
"  stitutes  for  the  spring-house  as  our  more  scantily-watered  farms 
*'  might  admit  of. 

"  Churning. — The  next  morning  we  rose  at  half-past  four  to 
*' see  the  churning  and  butter-making.  The  churn  is  a  large 
*'  barrel  (bulging  only  enough  to  make  the  hoops  drive  well)  with 
'^'  a  journal  or  bearing  in  the  center  of  each  head,  so  that  it  may 
•■'  be  revolved  by  horse-power.  This  barrel  has  stationary  short 
"arms  attached  to  the  inside  of  the  staves,  so  arranged  as  to  cause 
"  the  greatest  disturbance  of  the  milk  as  it  passes  through  them 
"in  the  turning  of  the  churn.  At  one  side  is  a  large  opening 
"  secured  by  a  cover  that  is  screwed  firmly  into  its  place — this  is 
"  the  cover  or  lid  of  the  churn.  Near  it  is  a  hole  less  than  an  inch 
"  in  diameter,  for  testing  the  state  of  the  churning  and  for  drawing 
"off  the  buttermilk.      This  is  closed  with  a  wooden  plug. 

"The  churning  lasted  about  an  hour,  at  the  end  of  which  time 
"  it  was  necessary  to  add  a  little  cold  milk  to  cause  the  butter  to 
"gather.  This  being  secured,  and  the  buttermilk  drawn  off,  cold 
*' water  was  twice  added,  a  few  turns  being  given  each  time  to  the 
"  churn,  and  when  the  last  water  was  drawn  off  it  came  nearly 
"  free  of  milkiness.  A  crank  was  then  put  on  to  an  arm  of  the 
"  churn,  the  horse-power  thrown  out  of  gear,  and  a  gentle  rocking 
*'  motion  caused  the  butter  to  be  collected  at  the  lower  side,  directly 
31 


480  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

''  over  the  small  hole — through  which  the  remaining  water  escaped. 
"  It  was  left  in  this  condition  about  two  hours.  After  breakfast 
"  we  returned  to  see  the  working  of  the  butter. 

"  Buttcr-xvorker.  —  In  one  corner  of  the  sprinji-house  stands  the  ' 
*'  butter-worker,  a  revolving  table  about  three  feet  in  diameter. 
'"  The  center  of  this,  for  a  diameter  of  twelve  inches,  is  an  iron 
"  wheel  with  a  row  of  cogs  on  the  upper  side  of  its  rim.  From 
"  this  rim  to  the  raised  outer  edge  the  table  (made  of  wood)  slopes 
"  downward,  so  that  as  the  buttermilk  is  worked  out  it  passes  into 
*' a  shallow  groove  and  is  carried  away  through  a  pipe  which  dis- 
*'  charges  into  a  pail  standing  below.  Over  the  sloping  part  of 
''  the  table  there  works  a  corrugated  wooden  roller,  revolving  on 
**  a  shaft  that  is  supported  over  the  center  of  the  table,  and  has  a 
''  small  cog-wheel  that  works  in  the  cogged  rim  of  the  center 
*'  wheel,  and  causes  the  table  to  revolve  under  the  roller,  as  this 
*'  is  turned  bv  a  crank  at  its  outer  end.  Of  course  the  roller  is 
'' larger  at  one  end  than  at  the  other,  so  as  to  conform  to  the  slope 
^'  of  the  table,  and  its  corrugations  are  very  deep,  not  less  than 
*'  two  inches  at  the  larger  end.  Supported  at  each  end  of  the 
*'  roller,  and  on  both  sides,  are  beveled  blocks,  which,  as  the 
*•*•  table  revolves,  force  the  butter  from  each  end  toward  the  center 
"  of  the  slope.  About  twentv  pounds  of  butter  is  now  put  on  the 
*'  table,  and  the  roller  is  turned,  each  corrugation  carrving  through 
"a  long,  narrow  roll,  which  is  immediately  followed  bv  another 
"  and  another,  until  the  whole  table  is  covered.  The  roller  does 
*'  not  quite  touch  the  table,  and  there  is  thus  no  actual  crushing  of 
*'  the  particles.  The  beveled  blocks  slightly  bend  these  rolls 
"and  crowd  them  toward  the  center  of  the  sloping  part,  so  that 
^' when  thev  reach  the  roller  again  they  are  broken  in  fresh  places, 
"  and  by  a  few  revolutions  are  thoroughly  worked  in  every  part. 

"  Final  Processes. — Then  follows  a  process  that  was  new  to  all 
"  of  us — the  '  wiping  '  of  the  butter.  7^he  dairy-maid  (in  this 
*'  instance  a  lusty  young  man)  turning  the  roller  backward,  with 
"  the  left  hand,  so  that  the  butter  comes  through  at  the  ri^ht  hand 
"side,  presses  upon  every  part  of  it  a  cloth  which  has  been  wrung 
*'  dry  in  the  cold  spring  water,  and   which   he  frequently  washes 


THE    DAIRY.  481 

*■*■  and  wrings  out.  This  is  continued  until  not  a  particle  of  water 
"  is  to  be  seen  in  the  butter  as  it  comes  trom  the  roller,  to  which 
''  it  now  begins  to  adhere.  If  theie  is  any  secret  in  the  making 
''of  Philadelphia  butter,  this  is  it  ;  and  it  has  much  to  do  with  its 
"  uniform  waxiness  of  texture,  whether  hard  or  soft. 

"  After  this,  the  butter  is  salted  (an  ounce  of  salt  to  three 
"  pounds  of  butter) — still,  by  the  aid  of  the  machine,  and  any 
"  lurking  atom  of  moisture  is  in  this  way  prevented  from  becom- 
"  ing  a  cause  of  rancidity. 

"  When  the  salt  is  thoroughlv  worked  through  the  whole  mass, 
"  the  butter  is  removed  to  a  iarge  table,  where  it  is  weighed  out 
"and  put  up  into  pound-prints. 

"  The  working,  wiping,  and  salting  of  over  one  hundred  pounds 
"of  butter  occupied  about  an  hour,  and  before  lO  A.  m.  the  entire 
"churning,  beautifully  printed,  as  fragrant  as  the  newest  hay,  and 
"  as  yellow  as  pure  gold,  such  butter  as  only  Jersey  cream  will 
"  make,  was  deposited  in  large  tin  trays  and  set  in  the  water  to 
"  harden.  The  next  morning  it  was  wrapped  in  damp  cloths,  each 
"  pound  by  itself,  put  in  a  tin  case,  each  laver  having  its  own 
"  wooden  shelf,  with  tw^o  compartments  of  pounded  ice  to  keep 
"it  cool,  and,  surrounded  bv  a  well-coopered  and  securelv-locked 
"  cedar  tub,  was  sent  to  the  Continental  Hotel,  where  we  found 
"it,  on  our  return,  as  delicious  as  when  it  left  the  farm. 

"  It  is  very  difficult  to  describe  anv  process  in  which  so  much 
"  depends  on  the  judgment  of  the  operator,  and  the  writer  hardly 
"  hopes  for  more  than  that  this  will  stimulate  others  who  are  inter- 
"  ested  in  the  subject,  to  examine  for  themselves  the  dairy  opera- 
"  tions  of  this  interesting  and  beautiful  region. 

"  One  of  the  strongest  impressions  that  we  had  thus  far  received 
"  was,  that  much  of  the  excellence  of  the  butter  was  due  to  the 
"use  of  the  spring-house,  but  our  next  visit  (on  the  recommenda- 
"  tion  of  a  friend  who  gave  us  the  names  of  the  most  noted  of  the 
"  fancy-price  dairies)  was  to  a  farm  where  the  milk  is  kept  in  a 
"  deep  vault,  arranged  very  much  like  a  spring-house,  but  without 
"  water.  The  proprietor  of  this  farm,  a  man  of  long  experience 
"  and  of  excellent  reputation  as  a  butter-maker,  has  satisfied  him- 


482  HAND  r -BOOK    OF   UUSBANDRT. 

'•  self,  by  a  long  trial  of  both  systems,  that  the  dry  room  is  the 
•■'  best.  He  atiributcs  the  advantage  to  greater  dryness  ot  the  air, 
'■'■  but  as,  with  a  free  circulation  against  the  cold  stone  the  walls 
"  were  covered  with  moisture,  he  had  gained  very  little  in  this 
'•''  respect,  even  supposing,  which  is  doubtful,  that  dryness  would 
*■'•  be  a  sain. 

"  The  thermometer  on  the  wall  of  his  vault  was  not  more  than 
"one  degree  higher  than  that  of  the  spring-house,  and  our  impres- 
*'sion  was  that  a  low  and  uniform  temperature,  however  attained, 
"  is  the  important  consideration.  In  the  dairy  that  we  were  now 
''*•  visiting  there  were  no  shelves,  and  no  provision  was  made  for  a 
"circulation  of  air  around  the  pans,  as  is  considered  important  in 
"  the  dairies  of  our  own  region.  In  the  \ault,  as  in  the  spring- 
"  house,  the  pans,  which  are  equally  deep  and  have  e\  en  a  greater 
*' depth  of  milk  (o\er  four  inches)  were  placed  directly  upon  the 
*'  floor.  In  this  dairy  the  milk  was  allowed  to  stand  thirty-six 
"  hours  before  being  skimmed.  The  butter  is  worked  and 
"  salted  in  the  same  way,  and  is  equally  good  in  its  texture,  and 
'■'•  of  very  fine  flavor.  The  color,  however,  it  being  thought 
*'  desirable  to  bring  it  up  to  '  Alderney  '  standard,  was  secured  by 
"the  use  of  annotto^  which  is  used  winter  and  summer  to  secure 
"  uniformity  of  coloring.  A  solution  of  the  annotto  is  made  by 
"  boiling  it  in  water,  and  the  extract  is  mixed  with  the  cream  in 
"  the  churn.  On  this  farm  we  saw  some  fine  specimens  of  the  cel- 
*' ebrated  Chester  white  swine,  which  are  bred  in  their  perfection 
"  in  this  region,  and  are  sold  at  very  high  prices.  They  are  sent 
"  by  express,  at  a  tender  age,  to  all  parts  of  the  country. 

"  From  here  we  went  to  another  farm  in  the  vicinity  of  West- 
"  Chester,  which  bears  an  equally  high  reputation  for  its  butter,  and 
"  where  the  spring-house  has  been  abandoned,  and  the  cream  is  kept 
"  as  previously  described,  in  a  dry  vault.  In  the  manufacture  of 
"  the  butter,  the  same  processes  obtain,  and  the  same  good  result 
"is  secured.  In  all  of  the  instances  described  a  very  high  price, 
"much  above  that  of  the  common  market,  is  obtained." 

My  own  milk-house  at  Ogden  Farm,  where  it  was  impossible 
to  secure  the  advantages  of  a  living  spring,  has  been  so  constructed 


THE  DAIRY.  483 

as  to  secure  the  advantage  of  cold  water  forced  from  a  constant  well, 
about  looo  feet  away,  by  a  self-regulating  windmill.  This  is  the 
same  well  and  mill  by  which  the  barn  is  supplied,  as  before  described. 
When  the  flow  is  not  needed  at  the  barn,  it  is  diverted  to  the  milk- 
house,  where  it  is  received  in  a  mason-work  tank  3  ft.  deep,  2  ft.  wide 
and  10  ft.  long.  The  overflow  of  this  tank  runs  to  a  duck-pond  near 
the  house. 

After  due  experimenting  with  other  systems  of  setting  milk,  and 
after  a  careful  examination  of  the  "  large-pan  "  system,  I  have  settled 
on  the  use  of  deep  cans, — 8  inches  in  diameter  and  20  inches  deej), — 
filled  with  milk  to  within  about  3  inches  of  the  top.  These  cans  are 
ballasted  by  a  heavy  "iron-clad"  bottom,  so  that  they  will  float 
upright.  They  are  placed  in  the  tank,  where  they  float  with  the  sur- 
face of  the  milk  an  inch  or  more  below  the  level  of  the  water.  This 
secures  a  sufficiently  rapid  reduction  of  the  temperature  of  the  milk 
to  that  of  the  water,  which  is  in  our  case  about  54°,  but  which 
would  be  better  to  be  much  lower, — even  40°. 

At  a  temperature  of  54°  the  milk  remains  sweet  until  all  the  cream 
has  risen. 

The  cream  is  taken  off  with  a  skimming-dipper.  It  is  from  2 
inches  to  4  inches  deep,  according  to  the  season. 

The  churning  is  done  in  a  "  Bollard  "  churn,  which  is  an  oblong 
box  attached  to  an  oscillating  table,  having  a  fly-wheel  attached  to 
it  to  regulate  its  motion.  There  are  no  cleats  or  paddles  in  this  box; 
the  milk  is  thrown  with  a  "swash  "  from  end  to  end.  We  consider 
it  the  best  of  the  many  churns  we  have  tried,  and  have  had  it  in  use 
for  some  years. 

The  above  system  is  radically  different  from  the  one  with  which 
we  began  our  operations  ten  years  ago, — shallow  pans  and  a  dasher 
churn, — and  it  has  commended  itself  as  a  great  improvement.  We 
have  found  by  careful  and  repeated  trials  that  we  make  at  least 
as  much  butter, — we  think  rather  more;  that  the  quality  is  de- 
cidedly better;  and  especially  that  it  is  more  uniform  throughout 
the  year. 

The  butter  is  washed  in  the  churn  and  is  quickly  worked  on  a 
white-oak  table.  Two  persons  do  the  working;  one  chops  the 
butter  w^ell  over  with  a  two-handled  oak  worker,  and  the  other  pats 
the  surface,  as  it  is  being  chopped,  with  a  damp  sponge  (wrung  out  of 


484  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

cold  water),  to  remove  the  exuding  water  and  buttermilk.  The 
mass  is  repeatedly  turned  and  reworked,  and  at  each  turning  the  table 
is  sponged  off. 

Salt  is  then  added,  at  the  rate  of  one  ounce  to  each  three  pounds 
of  butter,  and  the  salted  mass  is  put  into  a  tin  pail  and  floated  in  the 
water  vat  to  cool.  This  small  quantity  of  salt  can  be  safely  used  only 
when  the  butter  is  to  be  used  fresh.  Our  deliveries  are  made  twice 
a  week.  In  the  case  of  butter  to  be  packed  and  sold  in  bulk,  for 
shipping  much  more  salt  will  be  needed.  It  must,  however,  be  borne 
in  mind  that  salt  injures — or  over-rides — the  delicate  natural  flavor 
of  butter.  It  is  to  be  used  only  in  such  quantity  as  will  give  it  the 
necessary  keeping  quality. 

After  a  few  hours  it  is  taken  out,  worked  (not  too  much)  and 
sponged,  and  then  made  up  into  half-pound  pats  for  market.  Each 
pat  is  wrapped  in  a  square  of  damp  cloth  and  put  into  the  delivery- 
boxes, — ice  being  used  in  summer. 

The  extra  work  of  making  and  shipping  we  estimate  at  one  cent 
per  pound.  The  extra  price  is  considerable.  For  all  that  v.e  can 
supply  at  all  regularly  we  get  one  dollar  per  pound.  On  about  looo 
lbs.  of  the  yearly  supply  we  pay  12J/2  per  cent,  commission  to  our 
city  agent.  In  June  we  often  have  a  large  surplus,  which  we  must 
sell  at  any  price  we  can  get.  In  one  year  we  have  sold  over  5900 
lbs.,  and  received  for  it,  in  cash,  over  $4400.  In  winter  we  color 
the  butter  by  the  process  recommended  by  Whitman  &  Burrill,  of 
Little  Falls,  N.  Y.  This  color  is  an  alkaline  extract  of  the  pigment 
of  annattoine,  which  is  the  dried  coloring-matter  of  annatto.  The 
quantity  used  is  very  slight, — only  about  one  tablespoonful  of  the 
extract  being  used  for  five  quarts  of  cream.  It  is  put  into  the  cream 
before  churning.  The  amount  which  attaches  to  the  butter  is  in- 
finitesimal. Annatto  itself  is  not  only  not  objectionable;  it  is  a  whole- 
some condiment  largely  used  in  Brazil  for  coloring  and  flavoring 
dishes, — very  much  as  we  use  tomato.  Care  must  be  taken  not  to 
color  too  deeply.  The  tint  grows  more  intense  with  time.  If  a  good 
"grass-color  "  is  given  to  the  fresh  butter,  it  will,  after  standing  a  day 
or  two,  become  much  too  deep  an  orange  shade. 

In  the  Amrrican  Agricultural  Annual  for  1868,  there  appears  an 
article  from   the  pen  of  Prof.  S.  W.  Johnson,  of  Yale  College,  on 


THE    DAIRY.  485 

the  subject  of  "  Milk  and  Butter,"*  from  which  the  subjoined 
quotations  are  made.  Prof.  Johnson's  article  is  based  chiefly  on 
researches  made  at  the  Experiment  Station  of  the  Royal  Agricul- 
tural Academy  of  Sweden,  in  Stockholm  : — 

"  Composition  of  milk. — Analyses  were  made  of  the  mixed  milk 
"  of  fifteen  cows,  (five  Ayrshire,  five  Pembrokeshire,  and  five 
*' Swedish  cows,)  which  were  highly  fed  and  milked  at  ^\—l\ 
"  A.  M.,  and  5j-6|  p.  M.  These  analyses,  extending  throughout 
"a  whole  year,  gave  the  foHowing  average  result  : — 

Fat,  (butter,) 4-05 

Albuminoids,  (caseine,  etc.,) 3'3a 

Sugar  of  milk 4-71 

Ash 0-73 


I2-8l 


Dry  matter I2"8l 

Water 87-19 


lOO'OO 


''  The  fluctuations  during  the  entire  period  were  remarkably 
*' small.  The  lowest  percentage  of  water  observed  was  85*92, 
"  and  the  highest  was  88"35.  In  but  four  instances  did  the  water 
"  fall  below  86-6,  and  in  but  four  did  it  rise  above  88.  The  com- 
"  position  of  the  milk  of  uniformly  well-ted  cows  is  therefore  very 
"  uniform,  and  scarcely  varied  throughout  the  year,  whatever  may 
"  be  the  changes  in  temperature,  weather,  etc. 

*'  Morniyig  and  Evening  Milk  exhibit  a  constant  though  slight 
*'  difference  in  composition,  which,  in  general,  consists  simply  in 
''  containing  a  half  per  cent,  more  fat  at  night  than  in  the  morning. 
"  In  the  morning  milk  this  fat  is  replaced  by  almost  precisely  the  same 
"  quantity  of  water. 

"  Further  investigations  showed  that  the  proportion  of  fat  is 
''  influenced  somewhat  by  the  time  that  passes  between  the  milk- 
"  ings — is,  in  fact,  less  the  longer  this  time.  Thus,  milk  taken 
"  after  an  interval  of 

*  American  Agricultural  Annual,  iS63.     Orange  Judd  &  Co.,  New  York. 


486  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

10  hours,  contained 4'36  pc  cent,  of  fat. 

11  «'  "         4- 3 1  "         " 

11      "  "         3  97         "         •• 

13      "  "        3-97         "         " 

J4      "  "         3-S« 

*'  Taking  into  account  the  greater  quantity  of  milk  obtained  in 
**  the  morning,  the  absolute  amount  of  fat  yielded  by  the  cow  is 
*■*■  rather  more  at  morning  than  at  night, 

"  j^verage  Composition  of  the  Products  obtained  from  Milk  in  mak- 
*■*■  ing  Butter. — In  making  butter,  lOO  parts  of  milk  yield,  on  the 
''average,  in  round  numbers  the  following  proportions  of  cream, 
"  butter,  etc.,  provided  the  cream  rises  in  a  cool  apartment,  so  that 
*'  no  sensible  evaporation  of  water  takes  place  : — 


Buttermilk 60 

Butter 4-0  ■»       Calculated 

Water  removed  from  butter  by  salting O'l  /  '■^'th'^uc  salt. 


101 

Cream 10 

Skimmed  Milk 90 

100 

*'  The   average   percentage   composition    of   these   products   is 
■ '  given  in  the  subjoined  table  : — 

Slcimmcd 
New  milk.         milk.  Cream.        Buttermilk,      Buttcr.f        Brine.| 

Fat 4-00  055  35'oo  i"67  85.00  o-oo 

Albuminoids* 3'25  337  2'2o  3.33  0-51  0-39 

Milk  sugar 450  466  3*05  461  070  384 

Ash 075  078  050  077  012  0-86 

Water ; 8750  90-64  5915  8962  1367  94  91 


Total. lOQ-OO     lOO-OO     JOO-OO     10000     lOO-OO     lOO'OO 

"  JFhen  is  Milk  or  Cream  ready  for  Churning  F — It  is  well 
''  known  that  it  is  very  difficult,  if  not  impossible,  to  bring  butter 
''  speedily  from  fresh  milk,  or  from  the  thin  cream  that  gathers 
''  upon  milk  kept  cold  for  twentv-four  hours.     It  has  been  supposed 

,  Caseinc  and  albumen.  t  Unsaltcd. 

X  Brine  that  separates  on  >vorking  after  salting;  sail  not  included. 


THE   DAIRY.  487 

"  that  milk  should  sour  before  butter  can  be  made.  This  is  an 
"  error,  numberless  trials  having  shown  that  sweet  milk  and 
"  sweet  cream  yield  butter,  as  much  and  as  easily  as  sour  cream, 
"  provided  they  have  stood  for  some  time  at  medium  temperatures. 
*'  It  is  well  known  that  the  fat  of  milk  exists  in  minute  globules, 
"  which  are  inclosed  in  a  delicate  membrane.  It  was  natural  to 
*'  suppose  that  in  fresh  milk  this  membrane  prevents  the  cohesion 
"  of  the  fatty  matters,  and  that  when,  by  standing,  the  milk  or 
"  cream  becomes  capable  of  yielding  butter  after  a  short  churn- 
*'  ing,  it  is  because  the  membrane  has  disappeared  or  become  ex- 
*'  tremely  thin.  Experiments  show,  in  fact,  that  those  solvents 
*'  which  readily  take  up  fat,  as  ether,  for  example,  dissolve  from 
"  sweet  milk  more  in  proportion  to  the  length  of  time  it  has  stood 
''  at  a  medium  temperature. 

"  Readiness  for  churning  depends  chiefly  upon  the  time  that  has 
**  elapsed  since  milking^  and  the  temperature  to  which  it  has  been 
"  exposed  in  the  pans.  The  colder  it  is,  the  longer  it  must  be 
"kept.  At  medium  temperature,  6o°-70°  F.,  it  becomes  suita- 
"  ble  for  the  churn  within  twenty-four  hours,  or  before  the  cream 
"has  entirely  risen.     Access  of  air  appears  to  hasten  the  process. 

"The  souring  of  the  milk  or  cream  has,  directly,  little  to  do 
"  with  preparing  them  for  the  churn.  Its  influence  is,  however, 
"  otherwise  felt,  as  it  causes  the  caseine  to  pass  beyond  that  gelati- 
"  nous  condition  in  which  the  latter  is  inclined  to  foam  strongly 
"  at  low  temperatures,  and  by  enveloping  the  fat-globules  hinders 
"  their  uniting  together.  On  churning  cream  that  is  very  sour^  the 
"  caseine  separates  in  a  fine  granular  state,  which  does  not  inter- 
"  fere  with  the  'gathering'  of  the  butter.  Even  the  tenacious, 
"  flocky  mass  that  appears  on  gently  heating  the  sweet  whey 
''  from  Chester  cheese,  may  be  churned  without  difficulty  after 
"  becoming  strongly  sour. 

"  Cream  churned  when  slightly  sour,  as  is  the  custom  in  the 
"  Holstein  dairies,  yields  butter  of  a  peculiar  and  fine  aroma. 
"  Butter  made  from  very  sour  cream  is  destitute  of  this  aroma, 
"  and  has  the  taste  which  the  Holstein  butter  acquires  after  keep- 
"  ing  some  time. 


488  HAXDY-BOOK    OF   HUSBANDRY. 

"  The  circumstances  that  influence  the  rapidity  of  souring  are 

"  chiefly   temperature  and   access  of  air.      When   milk  sours,  it  is 

**  because  ot  the  formation  of  lactic  acid  from  the  milk  sugar.    This 

*■*■  chemical  change  is  the  result  of  the  growth  of  a  microscopic  vege- 

'*  table  organism,  which,  according  to  Hallier's  late  investigations, 

**  is  of  the  same  origin  as  common  \  east.     Like  common  veast,  this 

*'  plant  requires  oxvgen  for  its  development.    This  it  gathers  from 

"  the  air,  if  the  air  have  access;  but  in  comparative  absence  of  air,  as 

*'  when  growing  in  milk,  it  decomposes  the  latter  (its  sugar)  and  the 

*'  lactic  acid  is  a  chief  result  of  this  metamorphosis.     If  milk  which 

*'  by  short  exposure  to  the  air  has  had  the  microscopic  germs  of  the 

**  ferment  plant  sown  in  it,  be  then  excluded  from  the  air  as  much 

*■*■  as  possible,  the  ferment,  in  its  growth,  is  necessitated  to  decom- 

''  pose  the  milk  sugar,  and  hence  the  milk  rapidly  sours.      On  the 

*'  other  hand,  exposure  to  the  air  supplies  the  ferment  partly  with 

"  free  oxvgen,  and  the  milk  remains  sweet  for  a  longer  period. 

**  Such  is  the  theory  of  the  change.     Miillcr's  experiments  confirm 

**  this  view  by  demonstrating  that  free  exposure  to  the  air,  or,  bet- 

*'  ter,  a  supply  of  pure  oxvgen  gas,  retards  the  souring  of  milk  ; 

''  while  confinement  from  the  air,  or  replacing  it  with  pure  nitro- 

''  gen,  hastens  this  change.     That  low  temperatures  should  prevent 

"  souring,  is  in  analogy  with  all  we  know,  both  of  ordinary  chemi- 

'•'■  cal  change  and  of  changes  that  depend  upon  vital  operations." 
******* 

*'  deration  of  the  cream  during  churning  is  of  little  importance. 
"  Neither  chemically  nor  mechanically  does  a  stream  of  air  favor 
"  the  separation  of  the  butter  in  any  perceptible  degree.  On  the 
*'  contrary,  cream  that  is  cold  and  slightly  sour,  is  thereby  con- 
*'  verted  into  a  mass  of  froth,  from  which  it  is  exceedingly  diflicult 

"  to  make  butter." 

******* 

"  Trashing  Butter. — To  prepare  butter  for  keeping  without 
"danger  of  rancidity  and  loss  of  its  agreeable  flavor,  gieat  pains 
"  are  needful  to  remove  the  buttermilk  as  completely  as  possible. 
"  This  is  very  imperfectly  accomplished  by  simply  working  or 
*'  kneading.      As  the  analysis  before  quoted  shows,  salting  removes 


THE   DAIRY.  489 

*' but  little  besides  water  and  small  quantities  of  sugar.  Caseine, 
*' which  appears  to  spoil  the  butter  for  keeping,  is  scarcely  diniin- 
"  ished  by  these  means.  Washing  with  water  is  indispensable 
"  for  its  removal. 

*■'  In  Holland  and  parts  of  Holstein  it  is  the  custom  to  mix  the 
"  cream  with  a  considerable  amount  of  water  in  churning.  The 
"butter  is  thus  washed  as  it  'comes.'  In  Holland  it  is  usual  to 
"wash  the  butter  copiously  with  water  besides.  The  finished 
"article  is  more  remarkable  for  its  keeping  qualities  than  for  fine- 
"  ness  of  flavor  when  new. 

"  The  Holstein  butter,  which  is  made  without  washing,  has  at 
"  first  a  more  delicious  aroma,  but  appears  not  to  keep  so  well  as 
"  washed  butter." 

"  Salting. — Immediately  after  churning  the  mass  consists  of  a 
*'  mixture  of  butter  with  more  or  less  cream.  In  case  very  rich 
"  cream  (from  milk  kept  warm)  is  employed,  as  much  as  one-third 
"  of  the  mass  may  be  cream.  The  process  of  working  completes 
"the  union  of  the  still  unadhering  fat  globules,  and  has,  besides, 
"  the  object  of  removing  the  buttermilk  as  much  as  possible. 
"  The  buttermilk,  the  presence  of  which  is  objectionable  in  new 
"  butter  by  impairing  the  taste,  and  which  speedily  occasions 
"  rancidity  in  butter  that  is  kept,  cannot  be  properly  removed  by 
"  working  alone.  Washing,  as  already  described,  aids  materially 
*■*■  in  the  disposing  of  the  buttermilk,  but  there  is  a  limit  to  its  use, 
*'  since,  if  applied  too  copiously,  the  fine  flavor  is  ijnpaired. 
"  After  working  and  washing,  there  remains  in  the  butter  a  quan- 
"  tity  of  buttermilk,  or  water,  which  must  be  removed  if  the  butter 
"  is  to  admit  of  preservation  for  any  considerable  time. 

"  To  accomplish  this  as  far  as  possible,  salting  is  employed. 
"  The  best  butter-makers,  after  kneading  out  the  buttermilk  as 
"  far  as  practicable,  avoiding  too  much  working  so  as  not  to 
"  injure  the  consistence  or  '  grain  '  of  the  butter,  mix  with  it  about 
"  three  per  cent,  of  salt,  which  is  worked  in  layers,  and  then 
"  leave  the  whole  twelve  to  twenty-four  hours.  At  the  expira- 
"  tion  of  this  time,  the   butter  is  again  worked,  and  still  another 


490  HANDY-BOOK   OF   HUSBANDRY. 

"interval  of  standing,  with  a  subsequent  working,  is  allowed  in 
**  case  the  butter  is  intended  for  long  keeping.  Finally,  when  put 
**  down,  additional  salt  (one-h.alf  per  cent.)  is  mixed  at  the  time 
**  of  packing  into  the  tubs  or  crocks. 

**  The  action  of  the  salt  is  osmotic.  It  attracts  water  from  the 
**  buttermilk  that  it  comes  in  contact  with,  and  also  takes  up  the 
*'  milk-sugar.  It  thus  effects  a  partial  separation  of  the  con- 
^' stituents  of  the  buttermilk.  At  the  same  time  it  penetrates  the 
*'  latter  and  converts  it  into  a  strong  brine,  which  reiiders  dccom- 
"  position  and  rancidity  difficult  or  impossible.  Sugar  has  the  same 
"effect  as  salt,  but  is  more  costly,  and  no  better  in  any  respect. 

"  Independently  of  its  effect  as  a  condiment,  salt  has  two  dis- 
*' tinct  offices  to  serve  in  butter-making,  viz.:  ist,  to  remove 
"  buttermilk  as  far  as  possible  from  the  pores  of  the  butter  ;  and 
"  id,  to  render  innocuous  what  cannot  be  thus  extracted. 

"  It  hardly  need  be  stated  that  the  salt  must  be  as  pure  as  pos- 
"  sible.  It  must  be  perfectly  white,  must  dissolve  completely  in 
"  water  to  a  clear  liquid,  untroubled  by  any  turbidity,  without 
"  froth  or  sediment,  must  be  absolutely  odorless,  of  a  pure  salt 
**  taste,  without  bitterness,  and  in  a  moderately  dry  room  must 
**  remain  free  from  perceptible  moisture." 

Concerning  the  very  important  question  of  the  kind  of  salt  to 
be  used,  the  following  quotation,  taken  from  the  same  article,  will 
he  found  useful  : — 

"  As  regards  the  purity  of  different  kinds  of  salt,  some  of  those 
**  in  use  in  this  country  deserve  notice  here.  Tlie  Turk's  Island 
"  salt  has  a  repute  not  justified  by  any  facts.  As  commonly  sold 
"  in  the  coarse  state,  it  is  extremely  dirty  and  impure.  Much  of 
*' the  fine  table  salt  commonly  sold  in  New  England,  in  Connecti- 
**  cut,  at  least,  is  also  impure,  and  not  fit  for  dairy  use.  The  purest 
'*  salt  made  in  this  or  any  country  that  the  writer  is  acquaint- 
"  ed  with,  came  some  years  ago  from  Syracuse,  New  York, 
"  where  the  ingenious  processes  of  Dr.  Goessman  were  then 
*'  employed.  It,  as  we  suppose,  the  same  processes  are  in  use 
"now,  the  'Onondaga  Factory  Filled  Salt'  must  take  a  rank 
"  second  to  none   as  regards  purity  and   freedom  from  deleterious 


THE    DAIRY.  491 

"ingredients,  especially  the  chlorides  of  calcium  and  magnesium. 
"  This  rank,  we  believe,  it  has  assumed  in  the  estimation  of  all 
"  who  have  given  it  a  fair  trial.  The  brand  '  Onondaga  Factory 
"Filled  Dairy  Salt'  corresponds  closely  with  Dr  Miiller's  de- 
"  scription  of  the  best  salt  for  removing  buttermilk.  It  is  seen 
"  by  the  microscope  to  consist  very  largely  of  their  shallow, 
"  hopper-shaped  crystals,  or  thin  lamina,  probably  resulting  from 
"  the  fracture  of  such  crystals.  In  dimensions  the  crystals  are 
"perhaps  a  trifle  finer  than  Dr.  Miiller  recommends.  By  sifting 
*'  on  meshes  of  one-thirtieth  of  an  inch,  the  coarser  parts  would 
*'  leave  nothing  to  be  desired  in  working  butter,  and  the  finer 
*' portion  would  be  perfectly  adapted  for  its  putting  down." 

It  cannot  be  too  strongly  impressed  on  the  mind  of  the  dairy- 
man that  his  success  in  the  manufacture  of  butter  for  market  will 
depend  on  scrupulous  cleanliness  in  every  operation,  more  even 
than  upon  the  quality  of  the  milk  which  his  cattle  yield.  Every 
pail,  pan,  stick,  and  cloth  used  in  any  part  of  the  whole  operation, 
should  be  thoroughly  washed  in  boiling  hot  water,  perfectly  dried, 
and  as  often  as  possible  exposed  to  the  sun  and  air.  The  least 
neglect  in  this  particular  will  inevitably  result  in  such  a  tainting 
of  the  cream  or  butter  as  must  unavoidably  affect  its  quality,  and 
in  still  greater  degree  the  reputation  of  his  dairy  in  the  market. 
A  little  expenditure  of  time  and  labor  in  attention  to  these  details 
will  be  better  rewarded  than  will  any  other  equal  outlay  in  the 
whole  course  of  the  business. 

The  golden  rule  of  agriculture, — that  whatever  is  worth  doing 
at  all  is  worth  doing  well,  applies  with  greater  force  to  the  opera- 
tions of  the  butter  dairy  than  to  those  of  any  other  department  of 
farming.  Probably  a  neat  and  attractive  mould  tor  putting  up 
butter  for  table  use  is  worth,  in  the  long  run,  fully  five  cents  tor 
every  pound  of  butter  made  ;  and  in  like  manner  the  wrapping  of 
the  prints  in  cloths,  and  the  sending  them  to  market  in  the  most 
carefully  prepared  condition,  adds  also  to  the  value  of  the  pro- 
duct ; — and  it  is  in  many  cases  to  these  little  details,  which  con- 
duce to  the  securing  of  fancy  prices,  that  we  must  look  for  almost 
the  sole  profit  of  butter-making.      During  periods  when  butter  is 


492  IIANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

cheap,  and  feed  and  labor  are  high,  probably  the  average  market- 
price  will  be  hardly  more  than  enough  to  pay  the  expenses  of 
cultivation  and  manufacture  ;  while  the  slightly,  and  indeed  often 
the  considerably  higher  prices  that  extra  care  enables  us  to  realize, 
will  throw  the  balance  very  satisfactorily  to  the  right  side  of  the 
sheet. 

In  putting  up  butter  for  distant  markets,  much  attention  should 
be  paid  to  the  style  of  the  package.  Oak  pails,  such  as  are  used  by 
farmers  in  the  vicinity  of  New  York,  holding  from  ten  to  twenty 
pounds  of  butter,  always  command  a  better  price  for  their  contents 
than  do  tubs  containing  butter  of  the  same  quality.  It  has  been 
recently  discovered  by  dairymen,  even  as  far  west  as  Ohio,  that  by 
using  the  form  of  tub  that  has  long  been  in  use  in  Orange 
County,  New  York,  and  by  branding  the  cover  "  Orange  Coun- 
ty," or  "  Goshen,"  they  can  secure  a  sufficiently  larger  price 
for  the  same  quality  of  butter  to  defray  the  expenses  of  shipment 
and  sale.  Of  course  these  practices  are  not  to  be  recommended, 
and  it  is  a  subject  of  regret  that  those  who  purchase  butter  in  the 
large  markets,  care  so  much  more  for  its  appearance  than  for  its 
quality.  But  the  fact  certainly  exists  that  this  high  value  is  at- 
tached to  the  simple  matter  of  looks,  and  he  would  be  an  unwise 
man  who  would  refuse  to  avail  himself  of  the  suggestion  hereby 
given,  not  to  the  extent,  of  course,  of  adopting  a  false  brand,  but 
by  giving  in  some  manner  the  most  attractive  appearance  possible 
to  the  product  of  his  dairy,  and  by  establishing  as  soon  as  possible, 
a  reputation  for  his  own  packages. 

Butter  for  immediate  use  is  often  sent,  to  even  distant  markets 
which  are  within  easy  reach,  in  what  is  called  a  cooler-tub. 
This  tub,  the  hinged  top  of  which  may  be  firmly  secured  by  the 
locking  of  a  bar  which  passes  over  it,  is  entirely  filled  by  a  tin 
vessel  of  which  each  end  is  cut  od'  with  tin  partitions,  leaving 
spaces  in  which  to  place  pounded  ice.  The  center  space  is  occu- 
pied by  thin,  wooden  platforms,  laid  upon  projections  on  the  side 
of  the  tin  vessel,  which  serve  to  separate  the  layers  of  prints  or 
balls,  and  prevent  their  being  bruised.  The  tub  is  usually  made 
of  sufficient   size  to  hold  sixty  pounds  of  butter.      In  using  a  tub 


THE    DAIRY.  493 

of  this  sort  it  is  found  that  after  it  has  made  a  trip  of  four  or  five 
hours  in  the  hottest  weather  there  is  still  ice  remaining  in  the 
compartments  ;  and,  with  the  aid  of  the  wet  cloths  about  the 
prints,  butter  is  deHvered  at  all  times  in  the  hardest  possible 
condition. 

In  packing  down  butter  for  winter  use,  equally  careful  attention 
should  be  paid  to  all  the  details  of  its  manufacture,  but  the  inter- 
vals between  the  churnings  should  be  as  long  as  it  is  possible  to 
make  them  without  allowing  the  cream  to  sour,  for  the  reason  that 
large  churnings  of  butter  packed  away  at  one  time  keep  better, 
and  make  a  more  uniform  appearance  throughout  the  package, 
than  where  smaller  quantities  are  put  in  in  thinner  layers.  Each 
layer,  after  being  thoroughly  pressed  into  its  place,  should  be 
covered  with  a  light  sprinkling  of  the  best  quality  of  salt,  and  the 
surface  should  always  be  covered  with  a  damp  cloth  sprinkled 
also  with  salt. 

CHEESE. 

The  manufacture  of  cheese  in  this  country  is  very  rapidly  bemg 
concentrated  into  a  wholesale  business  by  means  of  the  factory 
system,  it  being  generally  found  that  in  the  wholesale  operation 
there  is  sufficient  economy  to  enable  the  manufacturers  to  pay  to 
the  farmer  a  higher  price  for  his  milk  than  it  would  yield  if 
manufactured  at  home.  The  further  fact  exists,  that  cheese  so 
manufactured  according  to  a  regular  system,  large  quantities  being 
made  at  the  same  time,  is  generally  of  better  quality  than  it  is 
possible  to  attain  in  smaller  workings.  So  strikingly  true  is  this, 
that  in  England,  American  factory-made  cheeses  are  taking  the 
precedence  of  all  others,  except  the  peculiar  fancy  brands,  such  as 
Stilton,  Chedder,  etc.  ;  and  here  as  well  as  there  it  is  a  recog- 
nized fact  that  the  factory-made  cheeses  are  generally  superior  to 
any  others.  The  best  exposition  that  has  yet  been  made  of  the 
factory  system,  is  to  be  found  in  the  Amer-'ican  Agricultural  Annual 
for  1 868,  before  quoted  from,  in  treating  of  butter-making,  in 
which  there  is  an  article  entitled,  "  Factory  Dairy  '^ractice,"  by 
Gardner    B.    Weeks,   secretary    of    the    American    Daiiymen's 


494  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

Association.  As  being  valuable  to  farmers  who  may  contemplate 
the  organization  of  cheese-making  companies,  the  entire  article  is 
well  worthy  of  perusal.  For  the  purpose  of  making  this  descrip- 
tion as  complete  as  possible  the  following  extracts  from  it  are 
here   made  : — 

"  The  original  price  paid  for  making  cheese  was  one  cent  per 
"pound,  (cured,)  and  the  patrons  of  the  factory  were  charged,  in 
"  addition,  with  their  proportion  of  the  expenses  for  boxes,  bandage, 
"coloring,  rennets,  salt,  etc.  During  the  war,  however,  this  price 
"  rose  in  many  cases  to  one  cent  and  a  half  per  pound,  and  justly 
"  too.  At  present  the  usual  charge  is  one  cent  and  a  quarter  per 
*'  pound.  In  many  cases  the  patrons  pay  two  cents  per  pound  for 
"  making  and  for  the  materials. 

*'  A  factory  of  300  cows  requires  the  labor  of  one  man  and  two 
"  women. 

"  One  of  from  400  to  500  cows  will  need  two  men  and  two 
"  women. 

"  One  of  600  to  750  cows  will  require  three  men  and  two 
"  women. 

"  The  wages  paid  to  cheese-makers  vary  from  eight  to  thirty 
"  dollars  a  week,  and  board — according  to  the  experience  and 
"reputation  of  the  maker,  the  size  of  the  dairy,  and  other  circum- 
*'  stances.  The  average  price  paid  does  not  vary  much  from  two 
*' dollars  per  day,  and  board.  The  other  'help'  need  not 
"  be  experienced  hands,  but  should  at  least  be  active  and  intelli- 
"  gent. 

"  Very  often  factories  are  let  to  a  competent  cheese-maker, 
*'  or  other  person,  who  engage  to  furnish  the  necessary  help  for 
*'  making  and  curing  the  cheese  for  a  stipulated  price  per  pound. 
*'  Usually  this  price  is  about  three-fifths  of  a  cent  per  pound, 
"  (cured.) 

"  Site  for  a  Factory. — Requirements. — The  first  requisite  is  a 
"  spring  furnishing  good  water  and  abundance  of  it,  and  so  situated 
"that  the  necessary  fall  mav  be  obtained.  Good  water  is  that 
"  which  stands  in  the  summer  at  from  42°  to  54"  Fahrenheit.  A 
"  spring  which  furnishes  water  of  such  a  quality,  sufficient  to  fill  a 


THE    DAIRY.  495 

*'  two-inch  pipe  under  a  good  head,  will  supply  a  factory  of  600 
*'  to  800  cows. 

"  T he  Alanufacturing  or  Vat-room  should  be  so  situated  that  the 
"  water  from  the  spring  may  be  readily  conducted  into  the  vats, 
*'  and  wherever  else  needed  ;  and  also  so  placed  with  reference  to 
*'  the  road  that  teams  may  have  easy  access  to  the  delivery 
"window.  The  sills  should  be  laid  on  stone  piers,  and  raised  so 
"  that  the  water  may  constantly  stand  underneath  the  entire  floor 
"  without  wetting  the  sills.  The  object  of  this  is  to  catch  the 
"drippings  of  whey  and  water  from  the  floor.  This  water  should 
*'  be  frequently  drawn  of  and  immediately  replaced,  thus  convey- 
*'  ing  away  all  matter  that  might  become  foul.  Cleanliness  and 
"  sweetness  of  premises  and  apparatus  are  absolutely  imperative, 
"if  a  high  degree  of  excellence  in  the  cheese  is  aimed  at. 

"  The  weight  upon  the  floor  of  the  vat-room  is  sometimes  very 
*'  great,  consequently  the  timbers  and  flooring  should  be  strong. 
"•'  As  water  is  used  abundantly  about  this  room,  it  is  well  to  have 
"the  floor  so  laid  that  all  water  will  converge  to  some  point  or 
"  points,  and  be  easily  swept  away.  It  should,  besides,  be  light 
*' and  cheerful,  and  be  well  arranged  for  complete  and  constant 
*■*  change  of  air  by  a  ventilator  in  the  roof. 

"  S'l-ze. — For  two  or  three  vats,  and  other  necessary  appliances, 
"  a  room  will  be  required  about  24  x  28.  Four  vats  will  need  a 
*'  space  about  30  x  30,  or  26  x  34.    Height  of  posts  about  10  feet. 

"  Press-Room. — This  should  be  immediately  contiguous  to  the 
"  vat-room,  and  on  the  same  level.  The  size  will  depend  upon 
"  the  number  of  presses  required.  In  most  cases  it  is  best  to 
"  have  the  building  wide  enough  to  contain  two  rows  of  presses, 
"  with  ample  room  for  the  curd-sink  to  pass  between  them.  A 
"  room  14  X  30  would  easily  accommodate  24  to  28  presses.  It 
"  should  also  be  flooded  underneath  at  all  times.  There  is  here 
*'  so  much  weight  upon  the  floor  that  it  is  recommended  that 
"  planks  be  used  underneath  the  press  frames.  In  many  factories 
"  the  vat-room  is  made  large  to  accommodate  the   presses. 

"  The  Curing-House^  by  far  the  largest  of  the  buildings  required, 
"  should  alwavs  be  situated  on  firm,  dry  ground,  where  pure  air, 
32 


496  HA.NDY-BOOK    OF    HU.SBANURY. 

"and  none  other,  will  surround  the  cheese.  If,  with  these  re- 
"quisites,  it  can  also  be  placed  on  the  same  level  with  the  press- 
"  room,  and  adjacent  to  it,  the  arrangement  cannot  be  imprm  ed. 
*'  The  cheese-house,  for  a  dairy  of  500  to  650  cows,  should  be 
"  about  28  X  100  feet,  and  two  stories  high.  If  a  basement  room 
"  can  be  had  in  addition,  it  is  very  desirable  for  use  in  spring  and 
"  autumn,  when  fires  are  needed  ;  and  even  in  the  warmer  part  ot 
"  the  season  it  is  immensely  better  to  put  cheese  in  an  under- 
"  ground  room,  than  in  the  upper  storv  beneath  the  heated  roof. 

"  Four  windows  on  each  side  in  each  story  will  be  sufficient, 
"  and  the  arrangement  should  be  such  that  when  these  are  opened 
"  for  ventilation,  the  wind  will  not  strike  directly  upon  the  cheese. 
*'  Holes  shouW  be  cut  in  the  various  floors,  and  at  frequent  inter- 
"  vals,  and  through  these  a  current  of  air  will  constantly  be  pass- 
*'  inc'.  and  ventilation  bv  the  windows  need  seldom  be  resorted  to. 

&'  - 

"  In  the  roof  of  the  curing-house  there  should  be  at  least  two 
"  large  ventilators. 

"  A  building  26  feet  wide  will  accommodate  five  lengths  of 
"tables  or  ranges,  each  table  holding  two  rows  of  cheeses  of  16 
'*  inches  diameter  ;  and  there  will  be  ample  space  left  for  the 
**  necessary  alleys.  To  avoid  in  some  measure  the  inroads  of 
"  of  mice  and  other  vermin,  it  is  better  to  have  passages  next  the 
*■*•  sides  of  the  building,  instead  of  putting  tables  there. 

"  Bo'der-roovi  and  Ice-house. — In  most  cases  the  furmer,  and  in 
"  many  the  latter,  will  be  required  ;  but  it  is  not  essential  to  dc- 
*'  scribe  them  here.  Easv  access  and  convenience  will  guide  in 
"  their  location.  The  boiler-room  should  be  large  enough  to  hold 
"at  least  two  or  three  days'  supply  of  wood.  And  if  it  contain 
"also  a  small  work-bench,  with  tools,  vise,  etc.,  it  will  be  much 
"  resorted  to." 

After  describing  at  length  and  with  good  illustrations  the 
different  utensils  used  in  cheese  factories,  the  following  directions 
for  manufacture  are  given  : — 

"  The  evening's  milk,  on  being  received,  should  be  about  equally 
"  divided  among  the  vats  in  use.  Cold  water  is  kept  constantly 
"  passing  around  the  vats,  and  the  milk  should  be  carefully  stirred 


THE   DAIRY.  497 

*' at  frequent  intervals,  until  a  temperature  of  68°,  or  lower,  has 
"  been  reached.  In  many  factories,  the  lack  of  water  in  warm 
"  weather  necessitates  the  use  of  ice  in  cooling  the  evening's  milk. 
"  It  is  usually  put  directly  into  the  milk.  Of  course,  '  necessity 
"  knows  no  law  '  in  such  exigencies,  but  where  it  is  possible  to 
''avoid  the  use  of  ice,  it  had  better  be  done.  Its  use  has  never 
"  been  claimed  as  an  advantage,  and  very  many  of  our  best  cheese- 
"  makers  believe  that  strictly  fine  cheese  cannot  be  made  from  milk 
"  thus  treated.  In  some  of  the  Massachusetts  cheese  factories, 
"and  in  an  occasional  one  in  New  York,  and  elsewhere,  milk  is 
"  received  but  once  daily — in  the  morning.  Only  in  cases  where 
"  each  patron  is  provided  with  an  abundance  of  good,  cool  water, 
"  proper  vessels  for  keeping  the  milk  in  small  quantities,  and 
"  exercises  unusual  care,  can  this  be  done  wiih  sateiy.  In  the 
"  majority  of  factories,  early  and  late  in  the  season,  milk  is  re- 
"  ceived  in  the  morning  only  ;  but  as  the  warm  nights  of  May 
"  come  on,  trouble  is  experienced,  unless  this  course  is  changed. 
"The  practice  of  adding  salt  to  the  milk  on  sultry  evenings,  is 
"  recommended  by  some,  but  its  utility  has  never  been  demon- 
"  strated.  (In  cases  where  the  water  used  in  cooling  milk  is 
"  deficient  in  quantitv,  or  possesses  too  high  a  temperature,  it  is 
"  sometimes  necessary  to  make  cheese  at  night,  and  again  in  the 
"  morning.  In  both  cases  the  animal  heat  should  be  removed 
"  from  the  milk  before  the  rennet  is  added.) 

"  In  the  morning,  the  night's  milk  will  be  found  so  cool,  that 
"  when  the  morning's  milk  is  added  to  the  vats,  the  temperature 
"  of  the  whole  mass  will  stand  at  about  65°. 

"  Treatment  of  the  Cream. — The  cream  which  rises  upon  the 
"  night's  milk  is  treated  in  two  ways.  It  is  either  stirred  thor- 
"  oughly  into  the  milk  while  cold  and  before  the  addition  of  any 
"  warm  milk,  or  it  is  carefully  skimmed  off,  diluted  with  warm 
"  water,  and  passed  through  the  strainer  into  the  vat  again.  In 
"  either  case,  the  loss  of  cream  is  small. 

"  Setting  the  Curd. — Before  any  thing  else  is  done  in  the  morn- 
"  ing,  the  exact  condition  of  the  milk  in  each  vat  should  be  ascer- 
"  tained.       If  all   is   right, — well.      If   one    vat    of    milk   seems 


498  HANDY-BOOK   OF   HUSBANDRY. 

"  inclined  to  *  change,'  or  sour,  fill  that  vat  first,  work  it  first, 
"  and  get  it  first  to  press.  In  such  case,  too,  it  is  well  to  add 
"  onl*'  so  much  morning's  milk  as  the  limited  capacity  of  the 
"  other  vats  renders  imperative.  The  vat  being  filled,  apply  the 
"  steam  at  once.  Stir  frequently  and  deeply,  and  pass  into  the 
"  small  strainer  all  specks  and  flies  that  may  appear  upon  the 
*'  surface. 

"  In  the  cooler  portions  o{  the  season,  the  heat  should  be  shut 
"off  when  the  temperature  of  the  milk  is  from  85°  to  88°.  In 
"  the  summer,  it  should  not  be  carried  higher  than  80°  to  82°. 
"  The  coloring  is  now  added,  and  when  this  is  thoroughly  stirred 
"  in,  the  rennet  should  be  put  in.  The  milk  should  now  be  left 
*' entirely  at  rest,  to  facilitate  coagulation. 

"  On  cold  days  the  vat  must  be  carefully  covered  over,  either 
*' by  cloths  or  a  wooden  frame,  prepared  for  that  purpose.  In 
'''■  about  fifteen  minutes'  time  let  the  milk  be  carefully  examined  to 
*'  see  if  the  action  of  the  rennet  has  begun.  In  most  cases,  the 
"  hand  will  decide  this  matter  ;  if  not,  a  tin  cup  is  nearly  filled 
"  with  hot  water,  and  set  into  the  milk  for  a  few  moments.  If, 
"  on  removing  this,  a  mucous  gathering  be  formed  upon  the  bot- 
"  tom  and  sides  of  the  cup,  all  is  going  on  right.  If  both  tests 
"  are  unsatisfactory,  they  are  to  be  repeated  after  ten  minutes 
*'  longer.  If  now  there  are  no  signs  of  coagulation,  the  hand  is 
"  passed  down  into  the  milk  to  the  bottom  of  the  vat,  and  if  there 
"  is  no  thickening  there,  more  rennet  is  added  at  once.  The 
*'.' setting'  of  the  milk  is  one  of  the  nicest  operations  of  cheese- 
"  making,  and  requires  experience  and  judgment. 

"  Trtatrnent  of  the  Curd  in  the  Vat. — The  curd,  when  ready  for 
"  cutting,  will  break  with  a  clean  fracture  over  the  finger  when 
"  tested.  In  some  factories  the  use  of  the  knife  is  not  at  all  re- 
"  sorted  to,  the  breaking  of  the  curd  being  done  entirely  by  hand. 
"  In  most  instances,  however,  the  knife  is  used.  At  first  the 
"curd  is  cut  lengthwise  ;  then  allowed  to  stand  for  a  few  minutes, 
"  when  it  is  cut  across.  The  knife  is  passed  quickly  but  carefully 
"  through  the  curd,  and  care  must  be  taken  to  have  the  bottom 
"  reached  by  the  blades. 


THE   DAIRY.  499 

"The  curd  remains  entirely  at  rest  for  twenty  minutes,  in 
*'  order  that  the  whey  may  separate  and  rise  to  the  surface.  If 
"the  vat  is  too  full  for  working  with  comfort,  a  portion  of  the 
"whey  is  now  dipped  off.  Just  here,  practice  differs  somewhat. 
"  Many  cheese-makers  apply  the  heat  now,  and  use  the  knife  no 
"  more  until  increased  warmth  has  hardened  the  curd  to  some  ex- 
"  tent.  In  other  cases,  in  what  is  known  as  the  '  coarse  curd  sys- 
"  teni,'  the  curd  is  cut  scarcely  at  all,  being  left  in  flakes  as  large  as 
"  the  palm  of  the  hand,  and  nearly  as  thick.  We  will  confine  our 
"remarks,  however,  to  a  description  of  the  medium  curd  plan. 
"  After  there  has  been  a  free  separation  and  rising  of  the  whey, 
"  the  agitator  is  used  in  carefully  turning  over  the  curd,  and  in 
"  bringing  to  the  surface  the  larger  particles  from  the  bottom. 
*'  Then  follows  the  knife  with  a  steady,  even  motion,  going  to  the 
*'  center  of  the  vat  only.  Two  or  three  times  passing  around  the 
"  vat  will  bring  the  particles  of  curd  to  the  desired  size,  /'.  ^.,  about 
*'  the  size  of  chestnuts,  or  a  little  larger.  If,  however,  the  curd 
"  be  in  a  bad  condition,  and  inclined  to  sour,  it  is  cut  finer.  Just 
"  before  the  cutting  is  done,  the  heat  is  again  turned  on,  and 
"  gradually  the  temperature  of  the  entire  mass  is  increased  to  88° 
*'  or  90°.  It  should  be  gently  stirred  to  avoid  packing  or  lumping, 
*'  and  to  render  an  evenness  of  heat  more  secure.  Cheese-makers 
"  who  favor  strictly  fine  curds,  use  the  knife  freely  during  this 
"  operation  of  heating,  and  bring  the  curd  to  the  fineness  of  wheat 
*'  kernels. 

"The  heat  being  now  shut  off,  the  gentle  agitation  of  the  curd 
"  is  continued  for  about  ten  minutes,  or  until  all  disposition  of  the 
*'  curd  to  pack  is  past.  After  remaining  at  rest  for  fifteen  minutes, 
*'  in  order  that  the  finer  particles  of  curd  may  settle  to  the  bottom, 
*' the  tin  strainer  is  placed  in  one  corner  of  the  vat,  and  by  means 
"  of  the  siphon  the  whey  is  drawn  off  until  the  mass  of  curd  be- 
"  gins  to  appear  above  the  surface.  It  is  now  again  carefully  brok- 
*'  en  up  and  separated,  and  the  heat  is  once  more  applied  and  con- 
"tinued  until  the  thermometer  indicates  96°  to  98°.  In  cold 
*' weather  the  temperature  may  be  carried  to  100°  or  102°,  but 
"  ordinarily  98°  is  sufficient.      Stirring  is  continued  for  about  fifteen 


500  HAXDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

*^  minutes  after  this,  and  then  the  curd  is  allowed  to  remain  at  rest 
*'  until  perfected.  On  cool  days  it  is  better  to  cover  the  top  of 
''  the  vats  with  cloths  to  retain  the  heat. 

"  f  ormerly  cheese-makers  believed  that  the  curd  was  ready 
*'  for  dipping  out  when  sufficiently  cooked,  whether  any  change  or 
*'  acidity  was  perceptible  in  the  whey  or  not.  It  is  now  the 
*'  almost  universal  practice  to  retain  the  curd  in  the  vat  until  the 
'•'■  whey  is  slightly  sour.  It  is  believed  that  this  acidity  has  a 
*'  direct  beneficial  influence  upon  the  texture  and  flavor  of  the 
''  cheese,  rendering  it  less  porous  and  less  liable  to  get  into  that 
*'  state  in  warm  weather  which  dealers  denominate  *  out  of  flavor.' 
*'  Here,  however,  is  another  nice  point  in  cheese-making,  to 
"  determine  just  how  far  this  acidity  may  safely  proceed,  and 
"  to  know  precisely  when  the  curd  should  be  removed  from  the 
"  whey ;  for,  if  permitted  to  go  one  step  too  far,  a  sour  cheese  is 
*'  inevitable. 

"  Salting. — A  few  cheese-makers  recommend  salting  the  curd 
"  in  the  \at  while  a  small  portion  of  the  whey  remains.  The 
"  advantage  claimed  is,  that  the  curd  can  be  more  evenly  salted 
"  than  in  any  other  way.  Salting  is  generally  done  in  the  sink, 
*'  however,  after  the  whey  is  drained  ofF  and  the  curd  is  pretty  dry 
"  and  cool.  The  salt  is  not  usually  put  on  all  at  once,  but  grad- 
*'ually,  and  the  curd  is  well  mixed  at   each   salting. 

"  Ordinarily,  the  rule  for  salting  is  about  2  -j\  pounds  of  salt 
"to  looo  pounds  of  milk  ;  considerably  less  than  this  very  early  in 
"the  season,  somewhat  less  in  the  autumn  months,  and  perhaps  a 
"  little  more  in   very  warm  weather. 

"  In  Central  New  York,  the  Syracuse  Factory  Filled  Salt  is 
"  almost  universally  used  for  dairy  purposes.  Doubtless  the  Ash- 
"•  ton.  Salt  (from  Liverpool)  is  purer  and  better,  but  it  is  far  more 
"  expensive. 

"  When  thoroughly  cooled^  the  curd  is  dipped  into  the  hoops,  and 
**  pressed  about  an  hour.  It  is  then  taken  out,  carefully  bandaged, 
"and  returned  to  the  press,  there  to  remain  until  the  latter  is 
"•'•  needed  again.  Perhaps  in  no  point  is  the  ordinary  practice  in 
"  cheese  factories  so  radically  wrong  as  in  pressing  cheese.     They 


THE  DAIRY.  601 

*'  should  always  be  pressed  two  days,  or  more  -,  but  in  reality  they 
*■'■  seldom  remain  in  the  hoops  over  twenty  hours." 

"  Treatment  of  Cheese  in  the  Curing-Room. — On  being  brought  to 
*'  the  cheese-house,  the  cheeses  are  placed  upon  the  tables  or 
*'  ranges  and  after  standing  a  few  minutes  \n  order  to  dry,  the  tcp 
*'  surfaces  should  be  liberally  greased  with  hot  whey-oil.  The 
'^  bandage  which  extends  above  the  edge  should  be  about  i^  inches 
*'  wide,  cut  down  in  slits,  so  that  it  may,  when  dry,  be  oiled  and 
"  neatly  plaited  down  upon  the  surface.  In  most  factories  the 
"  sides  of  the  cheese  are  also  greased,  after  each  cheese  has  been 
*'  properly  marked  and  numbered. 

'*  The  next  day  the  cheeses  are  turned  and  the  other  surface  is 
"oiled.  The  grease  first  used  upon  the  cheese  is  colored 
*'  with  annotto,  so  as  to  present  a  rich  and  attractive  appearance 
*'  outwardly. 

*'  Ordinarilv,  cheeses  require  oiling  only  two  or  three  times  be- 
"  fore  being  fit  for  market.  In  cold  or  windy  weather,  however, 
*'  the  surfaces  need  frequent  applications,  or  they  will  '  check,' 
"  (crack  on  the  surface.) 

"  Until  three  weeks  old,  cheese  should  be  turned  every  day, 
*'  (except  Sundays  ;)  afterward  once  in  two  days  will  answer. 
*' The  temperature  of  the  curing-house  is  most  favorable  if  about 
"  70°  to  75°;  if  warmer  ventilate  thoroughly;  if  much  cooler, 
''employ  artificial  heat,  or  the  new  cheese  will  become  bitter. 

"Wind,  blowing  upon  the  cheese,  will  'check'  the  surface; 
"the  sun,  shining  directly  upon  them,  will  heat  and  soften  them 
"  too  much. 

"  Cheeses  insufficiently  cooked  or  lightly  salted,  or  those  into 
"  which  cold  curd  has  been  put,  will,  in  warm  weather,  hufF  or 
"  swell  up  in  spots  upon  the  surface.  In  such  cases  the  confined 
"air  and  gas  which  produces  the  trouble  must  be  frequently  let 
"  out,  and  the  hole  thus  opened  carefully  closed  to  avoid  injury 
"  from  flies. 

"  Sour  cheese  will  check  or  crack  despite  all  efixDrts,  but  extra 
"  attention  and  frequent  oiling  and  turning  will  be  beneficial. 


502  HANDY-BOOK   OF   HUSBANDRY. 

"  Cracks  or  blemishes  upon  the  surface  of  the  cheese,  caused 
*' either  by  sourness,  accident,  flies,  or  mice,  should  be  carefully 
*'  filled  up  with  a  bit  of  cured  cheese,  and  a  piece  of  thin  manilla 
*'  paper  put  over  the  spot  to  keep  out  the  flies.  Flies  are  a  source 
*'  of  serious  trouble  during  a  portion  of  the  season,  and  unless  the 
"  cheeses  are  most  assiduously  watched,  considerable  injury  will  be 
*'  done.  When  the  mites  have  secured  a  lodgment  in  the  cheese, 
*■'■  thev  can  be  brought  to  the  surface  by  placing  a  cloth  or  paper 
*' over  the  orifice  so  as  to  entirely  exclude  the  air.  In  some  cases,  if 
*'  they  are  very  numerous  and  have  been  at  work  for  several  davs, 
"the  knife  must  be  freely  used, and  the  affected  portioi\  cut  away. 
"  Then  refill  with  cured  cheese.  Cayenne  pepper  put  into  the 
*'  grease,  is  thought  to  be  a  protection  against  the  dep.'-edations  of 
"  flies.  And  alcohol,  in  which  led-pepper  pods  have  been  soaked 
*'  for  some  days,  applied  to  the  surface  of  checked  cheese,  will 
*'  keep  off  flies  for  a  time.  Some  persons  put  beeswax  into  the 
**  grease,  believing  that  this  better  prepares  the  surface  of  cheese 
"  to  resist  the  attacks  of  flies. 

"  It  is  to  the  curing-room  that  the  cheeses  are  brought  for  per- 
*'  fecting  and  ripening,  and  it  is  here  they  are  inspected  bv  the  pur- 
"  chaser.  Any  blemish  or  imperfection  will  here  be  brought  to 
"light.  It  is  true  that  if  cheeses  are  not  properly  made,  no 
"  amount  of  care  in  this  department  can  atone  for  this  deficiency. 
*'  It  is  also  true  that  cheese,  to  which  justice  has  been  done  in 
*' the  manufacture,  may  be  very  much  injured  and  depreciated  by 
*'  want  of  judicious  care  and  attention  while  curing. 

"  Nicety  in  small  things  will  pay  ;  not  alone  in  the  satisfaction 
"  of  admiring  them,  but  in  dollars  and  cents." 

Concerning  the  manufacture  of  cheese  in  domestic  dairies,  very 
complete  directions  are  given  in  Flint's  "  Milch  Cows  and  Dairy 
Farming,"  to  which  the  reader  is  referred,  as  it  would  be  difficult 
to  condense  within  the  narrow  limits  of  this  chapter,  so  much  as 
would  be  necessary  for  the  practical  information  of  cheese- 
makers. 

Tho  principle  upon  which  the   manufacture  of  cheese  is  based 


THE   DAIRY.  503 

is,  that  the  caseine  of  milk,  (that  is  its  cheesy  part,)  is  held 
in  solution  in  the  liquid  only  in  the  presence  of  an  alkali  there  ex- 
isting. Any  acid  that  will  neutralize  this  alkali,  deprives  it  of 
the  power  of  causing  the  solution  of  the  caseine,  which  is  there- 
upon rejected  by  the  water  and  forms  the  curd.  All  acids  produce 
this  effect,  although  many  of  them,  of  course,  are,  for  various 
jeasons,  not  suited  to  the  requirements  of  cheese-making.  Milk 
is  curdled  by  the  action  of  the  lactic  acid  that  forms  in  the  natural 
process  of  its  souring.  Flint  states  that  in  some  of  the  northern 
countries  of  Europe  a  little  butterwort  [Singuicula  vulgaris)  is 
sometimes  mixed  with  the  cow's  food,  causing  the  milk  to  coagu- 
late without  the  addition  of  an  acid  within  a  few  hours  after  being 
drawn.  In  the  almost  universal  dairy  practice  of  the  world,  ren- 
net (the  prepared  stomach  of  the  calf)  is  used  to  produce  coag- 
ulation. 

The  richness  of  cheese  depends  very  much  upon  the  quantity 
of  cream  that  it  contains,  but  not  a  little,  also,  on  the  mode  of 
manufacture.  Sometimes  the  cream  of  the  night's  milk  is  added 
to  the  morning's  milk,  a;  d  the  latter  made  into  cheese  ;  sometimes 
the  whole  milk  of  each  milking  is  curdled  ;  sometimes  only  skim- 
milk  or  buttermilk  is  used,  producing  a  cheese  which,  although 
lacking  in  richness,  and  somewhat  also  in  flavor,  is  a  highly  nu- 
tritious food.  As  an  instance  of  the  effect  of  the  mode  of  manu- 
facture upon  the  cheese-dairy,  it  may  be  stated  that  the  very  pop- 
ular Gruvere  cheese  (Schweitzer-kaese)  which  seems  to  be  rich 
and  is  certainly  very  high  flavored,  is   made  from   skim-milk. 

Mr.  Flint  quotes  the  following  from  a  report  made  to  the  New 
York  State  Agricultural  Society,  by  A.  L.  Fish,  of  Herkimer 
County,  whose  cows  averaged  775  pounds  of  cheese  each  in  the 
year  1845.  It  is  a  simple  statement  of  the  practical  operations 
of  a  successful  dairyman. 

"  The  evening's  and  morning's  milk  is  commonly  used  to  make 
*' one  cheese.  The  evening's  is  strained  into  a  tub  or  pans,  and 
"  cooled  to  prevent  souring.  The  proper  mode  of  cooling  is  to 
"  strain  the  milk  into  the  tin  tub  set  in  a  wooden  vat,  described  in 
*'  the  dairy  house,  and   cool  by  filling  the  wooden  vat  with  ice- 


504  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

"  water  from  the  ice-house,  or  ice  in  small  lumps,  and  water  from 
"the  pump.  The  little  cream  that  rises  over  night  is  taken  off" 
"  in  the  morning,  and  kept  till  the  morning  and  evening  milk  are  put 
*'  together,  and  the  cream  is  warmed  to  receive  the  rennet.  It  is 
"  mixed  with  about  twice  its  quantity  of  new  milk,  and  warm 
'*  water  added  to  raise  its  temperature  to  ninety-eight  degrees  -,  stir 
"  it  till  perfectly  limpid,  put  in  rennet  enough  to  curdle  the  milk 
*'  in  forty  minutes,  and  mix  it  with  the  mass  of  milk  by  thorough 
"stirring;  the  milk  having  been  previously  raised  to  eightv-eight 
**  or  ninety  degrees,  by  passing  steam  from  the  steam  generator  to 
"the  water  in  the  wooden  vat.  In  case  no  double  vat  is  to  be 
"  had,  the  milk  may  be  safely  heated  to  the  right  temperature,  by 
"setting  a  tin  pail  of  hot  water  into  the  milk  in  the  tubs.  It  may 
"  be  cooled  in  like  manner  bv  filling  the  pail  with  ice-water,  or 
"  cold  spring-water,  where  ice  is  not  to  be  had.  It  is  not  safe  to 
•'  heat  milk  in  a  kettle  exposed  directly  to  the  fire,  as  a  slight 
*'  scorching  will  communicate  its  taint  to  the  whole  cheese  and 
*'  spoil  it.  If  milk  is  curdled  below  eighty-four  degrees,  the  cream 
"  is  more  liable  to  work  off"  with  the  whey.  An  extreme  of  heat 
"  will  have  a  like  effiect. 

"  The  curdling  heat  is  yaried  with  the  temperature  of  the  air, 
"  or  the  liability  of  the  milk  to  cool  after  adding  rennet.  The 
"thermometer  is  the  only  safe  guide  in  determining  the  tem- 
*'perature  ;  for,  if  the  dairyman  depends  upon  the  sensation  of  the 
*'  hand,  a  great  liability  to  error  will  render  the  operation  uncer- 
"  tain.  If,  for  instance,  the  hands  have  previously  been  immersed 
*'  in  cold  water,  the  milk  will  feel  warmer  than  it  really  is  ;  if,  on 
"  the  contrary,  they  have  recently  been  in  warm  water,  the  milk 
*'  will  feel  colder  than  it  really  is.  To  satisfy  the  reader  how 
"  much  this  circumstance  alone  will  affect  the  sensation  of  the 
"  hand,  let  him  immerse  one  hand  in  warm  water,  and  at  the  same 
"  time  keep  the  other  in  a  vessel  of  cold  water,  for  a  few 
*'  moments  ;  then  pour  the  water  in  the  two  dishes  together,  and 
"  immerse  both  hands  in  the  mixture.  The  hand  that  was  previ- 
"  ously  in  the  warm  water  will  feel  ro/^,  and  the  other  quite  warm, 
"  showing  that  the  sense  of  feeling  is  not  a  test  of  temperature 


THE    DAIRY.  505 

"  worthy  of  being  relied  upon.  A  fine  cloth  spread  over  the  tub 
"  wh.le  the  milk  is  curdling,  will  prevent  the  surface  from  being 
*' cooled  by  circulation  of  air.  No  jarring  of  the  milk^  by  walking 
"  upon  a  springy  floor,  or  otherwise,  should  be  allowed  while  it  is 
"  curdling,  as  it  will  prevent  a  perfect  cohesion  of  the  particles. 

"  When  milk  is  curdled  so  as  to  appear  like  a  solid,  it  is  divided 
"  into  small  particles  to  aid  the  separation  of  the  whey  from  the 
"  curd.  This  is  often  too  speedily  done^  to  facilitate  the  work,  but 
*'  at  a  sacrifice  o'i  quality  and  quantity.'''' 

He  also  publishes  the  following  statement  of  a  lady  in  Massa- 
chusetts, whose  cheeses  received  the  first  premium  at  the  Franklin 
County  fair,  in  1857,  for  their  richness,  fineness,  and  delicacy  of 
flavor  : — 

"  My  cheese  is  made  from  one  day's  milk  of  twenty-nine  cows. 
*•'•  I  strain  the  night's  milk  into  a  tub,  skim  it  in  the  morning,  and 
''  melt  the  cream  in  the  morning's  milk.  I  warm  the  night's  milk, 
"  so  that  with  the  morning's  milk,  when  mixed  together,  it  will 
*'  be  at  the  temperature  of  ninety-six  degrees  ;  then  add  rennet 
"  sufficient  to  turn  it  in  thirty  minutes.  Let  it  stand  about  half 
'*  or  three  quarters  of.  an  hour  ;  then  cross  it  ofF  and  let  it  stand 
"  about  thirty  minutes,  working  upon  it  very  carefully  with  a  skim- 
"  mer.  When  the  curd  begins  to  settle,  dip  off  the  whey,  and 
"  heat  it  up  and  pour  it  on  again  at  the  temperature  of  one  hun- 
"  dred  and  two  degrees.  After  draining  ofF  and  cutting  up,  add  a 
*'  teacup  of  salt  to  fourteen  pounds. 

"  The  process  of  making  sage  cheese  is  the  same  as  the  other, 
**  except  adding  the  juice  of  the  sage  in  a  small  quantity  of  milk." 

The  manufacture  of  the  celebrated  Cheddar,  Gloucester,  Dun- 
lop,  Dutch,  and  Parmesan  cheeses,  is  described  with  some  fullness 
in  Mr.  Flint's  book,  that  of  the  Dutch  or  Gouda  cheese  being 
more  curious  than  any  of  the  others.  There  is  also  contained  in 
the  same  work  a  very  interesting  and  fully  illustrated  account  of 
the  Holland  dairy  system,  which  may  be  read  with  advantage  by 
all  American  farmers,  since  there  is  no  country  in  the  world  in 
which  the  various  processes  of  the  manufacture  of  butter  and 
cheese   are   carried   out  with    so   much  precision,  and  with  such 


506  HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

scrupulous  attention  to  that  cleanliness  on  which  complete  success 
in  all  dairy  operations  must  inevitably  depend. 

This  chapter  cannot  be  more  appropriately  closed  ihan  by  in- 
troducing the  following  extracts  from  Mr.  Flint's  "  Letter  to  a 
Dairy  Woman  "  : — 

"  I  need  not  remind  you  that  any  addition,  however  small,  to 
*'  the  market  \alue  of  each  pound  of  butter  or  cheese,  will  largely 
"  increase  the  annual  income  of  your  establishment.  Nor  need  I 
"  remind  you  that  these  articles  are  generally  the  last  of  either  the 
"  luxuries  or  the  necessaries  of  life  in  which  city  customers  are 
**  willing  to  economize.  They  must  and  will  have  a  good  article, 
"  and  are  ready  to  ^ay  for  it  in  proportion  to  its  goodness  ;  or,  if 
*'  they  desire  to  economize  in  butter,  it  will  be  in  the  quantity 
"  rather  than  the  quality. 

"  Poor  butter  is  a  drug  in  the  market.  Nobody  wants  it,  and 
*'  the  dealer  often  finds  it  difficult  to  get  it  off  his  hands,  when  a 
"  delicate  and  finely  flavored  article  attracts  attention  and  secures 
"  a  ready  sale.  Some  say  that  poor  butter  will  do  for  cooking. 
''  But  a  good  steak  or  mutton-chop  is  too  expensive  to  allow  any 
"  one  to  spoil  it  by  the  use  of  a  poor  quality  of  butter  ;  and  good 
*'  pastry-cooks  will  tell  you  that  cakes  and  pies  cannot  be  made 
"  without  good  sweet  butter,  and  plenty  of  it.  These  dishes  re\- 
"  ish  too  well,  when  properly  cooked  with  nice  butter,  for  any  one 
*'  to  tolerate  the  use  of  poor  butter  in  them. 

"  I  have  dwelt  on  the  necessity  of  extreme  cleanliness  in  all  the 
*'  operations  of  the  dairy  ;  and  this  is  the  basis  and  fundamental 
''  principle  of  your  business.  I  would  not" suppose,  for  a  moment, 
*'  that  you  are  lacking  in  this  respect.  The  enormous  quantities 
**  of  disgusting,  streaky,  and  tallow-like  butter  that  are  daily  thrust 
*'  upon  the  seaboard  markets  must  be  due  to  the  carelessness 
*■'■  and  negligence  of  heedless  men,  to  exposure  to  sun  and  rain, 
*' to  bad  packing,  and  to  delays  in  transportation.  Many  of  these 
*'  evils  you  may  not  be  able  to  remove,  since  you  cannot  follow 
*'  the  article  to  the  market,  and  see  that  it  arrives  safely  and 
*'  untainted.  But  you  can  take  greater  pains,  perhaps,  in  some 
*'  of  the  preliminary  processes  of  making,  and  produce  an  article 


THE  DAIRY.  507 

'*  that  will  not  be  so  liable  to  injure  from  keeping  and  transporta- 
''  tion ;   and  then,  if  fault  is  to  be  found,  it  does  not  rest  with  you. 

"  I  will  not  suggest  the  possibility  that  your  ideas  of  cleanliness 
"  and  neatness,  may  be  at  fault  ;  and  that  what  may  seem  an  excess 
'*  of  nicety  and  scrubbing  to  you,  may  appear  to  be  almost  slov- 
■^'enliness  to  some  others,  whose  butter  receives  the  highest  price 
"  in  the  market,  and  always  finds  the  readiest  sale."  *  *  * 
"Dutch  dairy-women  give  all  the  utensils  of  the  dairy,  from  the 
"  pails  to  the  firkins  and  the  casks,  infinite  attention,  and  are  also 
*'  extremely  careful  that  no  infectious  odor  rises  from  the  surround- 
*' ings.  I  think  you  will  see  that  it  is  a  physical  impossibility  that 
"  any  taint  can  affect  the  atmosphere  or  the  utensils  of  such  a 
"dairy,  and  that  many  of  the  details  of  their  practice  may  be 
"  worthy  of  imitation  in  our   American  dairies. 

"  And  here  allow  me  to  suggest  that,  though  we  may  not  approve 
*' of  the  general  management  in  any  particular  section,  or  any 
*'  particular  dairy,  it  is  rare  that  there  is  not  something  in  the 
"  practice  of  that  section  that  is  really  valuable  and  worthy  of 
"  imitation." 

"  Under  ordinarily  favorable  circumstances,  from  twelve  to 
*'  eighteen  hours  will  be  sufficient  to  raise  the  cream,  and  I  do  not 
"  believe  it  should  stand  over  twenty-four  hours  under  any  circum- 
"  stances.  This,  I  am  aware,  is  very  different  from  the  general 
"practice  over  the  country.  But,  if  you  will  make  the  experi- 
*'ment  in  the  most  careful  manner,  setting  the  pans  in  a  good,  airy 
"  place,  and  not  upon  the  cellar  bottom,  I  think  you  will  soon 
"  agree  with  me  that  all  you  get,  after  twelve  or  eighteen  h  ours, 
"  under  the  best  circumstances,  or  at  most  after  twenty-four  hoi  rs, 
"  will  detract  from  the  quality  and  injure  the  fine  and  delicate 
"  aroma  and  agreeable  taste  of  the  butter  to  a  greater  extent  th?n 
"  you  are  aware  of.  The  cream  which  rises  from  milk  set  on  the 
'*  cellar  bottom  acquires  an  acrid  taste,  and  can  neither  produce 
"  butter  of  so  fine  a  quality  or  so  agreeable  to  the  palate,  as  that 
*'  which  rises  from  milk  set  on  shelves  from  six  to  eight  feet  high, 
"  around  which  there   is  a  full   and   free   circulation  of  pure  air. 


508  HANDY-BOOK   OF   HUSBAXDRV. 

'■'■  The  latter  is  sweeter,  and  appears  in  much  larger  quantities  in 
*■'  the  same  time,  than  the   former. 

"  If,  therefore,  you  devote  vour  attention  to  the  making  of 
*'  butter  to  sell  fresh  in  the  market,  and  desire  to  obtain  a  rcpu- 
*' tation  which  shall  aid  and  secure  the  quickest  sale  and  the  high- 
*' est  price,  you  will  use  cream  that  rises  first,  and  that  does  not 
*■'■  stand  too  long  on  the  milk.  You  will  churn  it  properly  and 
"patientlv,  and  not  with  too  great  haste.  You  will  work  it  so 
"  thoroughly  and  completely,  with  the  butter-worker  and  the 
''sponge  and  cloth,  as  to  remove  every  particle  of  buttermilk, 
'*  never  allowing  vour  own  or  anv  other  hands  to  touch  it.  You 
"will  keep  it  at  a  proper  temperature  when  making,  and  after  it 
"  is  made,  bv  the  judicious  use  of  ice,  and  avoid  exposing  it  to 
"the  bad  odors  of  a  musty  cellar.  You  will  discard  the  use  of 
"  artificial  coloring  or  flavoring  matter,  and  take  the  utmost  care 
"  in  every  process  of  making.  You  will  stamp  your  butter  tastc- 
"  fully  with  some  mould  which  can  be  recognized  in  the  market 
*'  as  yours  ;  as,  for  instance,  your  initials  or  some  form  or  figure, 
"  which  will  most  please  the  eye  and  the  taste  of  the  customer. 
"  You  will  send  it  in  boxes  so  perfectly  prepared  and  cleansed  as  to 
"  impart  no  taste  of  wood  to  the  butter.  If  all  things  receive  due 
*'  attention,  my  word  for  it,  the  initials  or  form  which  you  adopt, 
"  will  be  inquired  after,  and  you  will  always  find  a  ready  and  a 
"willing  purchaser,  at  the  highest  market-price. 

"  But  if  you  are  differently  situated,  and  it  becomes  necessary 
"  to  pack  and  sell  as  firkin-butter,  let  me  suggest  the  necessity 
"  of  an  equal  degree  of  nicety  and  care  in  preparation,  and  that 
*' you  insist,  as  one  of  your  rights,  that  the  article  be  packed  in  the 
"  best  of  oak-wood  firkins,  thoroughly  prepared  after  the  manner  of 
"  the  Dutch.  A  greater  attention  to  these  points  would  make  the 
"  butter  thus  packed  worth  several  cents  a  pound  more  when  it 
"arrives  in  the  market,  than  it  ordinarily  is.  Indeed,  the  man- 
"  ner  in  which  it  not  unfrequently  comes  to  market  is  a  disgrace 
"to  those  who  packed  it  ;  and  it  cannot  be  that  such  specimens 
"  were  ever  put  up  by  the  hands  of  a  dairywoman.  I  have  often 
"  seen  what  was  brought  for  butter,  opened  so  marbled,  streaked, 


THE    DAIRY.  509 

and  rancid,  that  it  was  scarcely  fit  to  use  on  the  wheels  of  a 
carriage. 

"  If  you  adopt  the  course  which  I  have  recommended  in  regard 
to  skimming,  you  will  have  a  large  quantity  of  sweet  skimmed- 
milk,  far  better  than  it  would  be  \i  allowed  to  stand  thirtv-six  or 
forty-eight  hours,  as  is  the  custom  with  many.  This  is  too 
valuable  to  waste,  and  it  is  my  opinion  that  you  can  use  it  to  far 
greater  profit  than  to  allow  it  to  be  fed  to  swine.  There  can  be 
no  question,  I  think,  that  cheese-making  should  be  carried  on  at 
the  same  time  with  the  making  ot  butter,  in  small  and  medium 
sized  dairies.  Some  of  the  best  cheese  of  Holland  is  made  of 
sweet  skim-milk.  The  reputation  of  Parmesan — a  skim-milk 
cheese  of  Italy — is  world-wide,  and  it  commands  a  high  price 
and  ready  sale.  By  cheese-making  you  can  turn  the  skim-milk 
to  a  very  profitable  account,  if  it  is  sweet  and  good.  You  will 
find,  if  you  adopt  this  system,  that  your  butter  will  be  improved, 
and  that,  without  any  great  amount  of  extra  labor,  you  will 
make  a  large  quantity  of  very  good  cheese,  and  thus  add  largely 
to  the  profit  of  your  establishment,  and  to  the  comfort  and  pros- 
perity of  your   family. 

"  But,  if  you  devote  all  your  attention  to  the  making  of  cheese, 
whether  it  is  to  be  sold  green,  or  as  soon  as  ripe,  or  packed  for 
exportation,  I  need  not  say  that  the  same  neatness  is  required  as 
in  the  making  of  butter.  You  will  find  many  suggestions  in 
the  preceeding  pages  which  I  trust  will  prove  to  be  valuable 
and  applicable  to  your  circumstances.  There  is  a  general  com- 
plaint among  the  dealers  in  cheese  that  it  is  difficult  to  get  a 
superior  article.  This  state  of  things  ought  not  to  exist.  I 
hope  the  time  is  not  far  distant  when  a  more  general  attention 
will  be  paid  to  the  details  of  manufacture,  and  let  me  remind 
you  that  those  who  take  the  first  steps  in  improvement  will  reap 
the  greatest  advantages." 


CHAPTER    XVII. 

THE    WINTER    FEEDING    AND    MANAGEMENT    OF    LIVE    STOCK. 

The  objects  in  keeping  animals  on  a  farm  are  : — 

1.  To  convert  vegetable  products  into  animal  products. 

2.  To  make  manure. 

3.  To  secure  the  necessary  motive  power  for  the  operations  of 
the  farm. 

All  of  these  are  items  of  the  farm's  business^  <ind  viewed  in  this 
light,  the  domestic  animals  bear  the  same  relation  to  his  opera- 
tions, that  the  steam-engine,  the  carding-machine,  and  the  loom 
do  to  the  owner  of  a  cotton-mill. 

They  are  a  part  of  the  machinery  Dy  which  he  accomplishes  his 
ends,  and  they  should,  in  a  purely  practical  point  of  view,  be  re- 
garded as  such.  They  should  be  kept  in  sound  condition,  and  in 
good  running  order,  and  made  to  perform  their  part  of  the  work, 
day  by  day,  in  the  best  and  most  economical  manner.  In  propor- 
tion to  the  completeness  with  which  this  is  done, — in  proportion, 
that  is,  to  the  intelligence  and  constant  watchfulness  with  which 
they  are  kept  up  to  the  mark,  and  made  to  perform  their  full 
share  of  the  work, — will  they  be  profitable  or  unprofitable. 

If  the  mill  owner  keeps  his  engine  running  with  full  power, 
consuming  its  maximum  amount  of  fuel,  and  then  supplies  his 
looms  with  barely  enough  cotton  for  the  profit  on  the  cloth  made 
to  pay  his  operatives,  he  will  be  out  of  pocket  by  the  full  cost  of 
running  his  engine,  of  the  wear  and  tear  of  his  machinery,  and  of 
the  interest  on  the  value  of  his  mill.  Before  he  can  actually  make 
money,  he  must  supply  enough  raw  material  to  increase  his  pro- 
duction to  an  amount  that  will  more  than  cover  all  outlays. 

The  extent  to  which  he  does  this  must  decide  the  degree 
to  which  he  is  to  be  considered  a  successful  manufacturer. 


WINTER    FEKDIiSG    OF     LIVE    STOCK.  511 

The  farmer's  case  is  a  precisely  parallel  one,  as  I  shall  en- 
deavor to  prove — for  he  cannot  be  considered  a  practical  farmer  in 
the  best  sense  of  the  term,  unless  he  makes  every  animal  on  his 
tarm  do  its  full  proportion  of  the  money  making  of  the  business — 
for  money  making  is  the  chief  aim  of  his  life  and  occupation. 

The  grain-grower — pure  and  simple — has  much"  legs  occasion 
for  the  constant  exercise  of  skill  than  the  stock-raiser.  He  has 
only  to  produce  his  crops,  to  sell  them,  and  to  keep  his  soil  in 
condition  for  his  requirements.  The  stock-raiser  has  all  this  to 
attend  to,  and,  in  addition,  he  must  constantly  regard  the  mani- 
fold needs  of  his  animals,  forcing  them  to  consume  the  largest 
possible  amount  of  food,  and  to  yield  the  utmost  possible  return 
for  the  food  and  care  bestowed  upon   them. 

His  success  depends  on  an  early  and  earnest  appreciation  of 
the  fact  that  only  to  the  degree  to  which  he  causes  his  animals  to 
consume  more  food  than  is  required  to  support  their  frames,  and 
to  carry  on  the  various  vital  functions,  will  there  be  a  profit  re- 
sulting from  their  keep.  A  certain  amount  of  food  is  required  to 
supply  the  animal's  respiration,  and  the  natural  waste  of  its  body. 
It  only  this  amount  is  given,  the  food  consumed  will  be  a  total  loss, 
except  for  the  value  of  the  manure  that  it  produces,  while  the 
interest  and  insurance  on  the  animal  itself,  the  time  expended  in 
its  care,  and  all  the  buildings  and  appliances  of  the  farm  that  its 
keeping  makes  necessary,  will   be   lost. 

Not  only  must  the  feeding  be  so  managed  as  to  contribute  the 
material  from  which  profit  is  to  be  made,  but  due  attention  should 
be  given  to  the  items  of  (i)  cleanliness,  (2)  regularity,  (3)  tempera- 
ture, (4)  exercise,  (5)  fresh  water,  (6)  pure  air. 

I.  Cleanliness  is  of  the  utmost  importance.  It  is  impossible 
for  any  of  the  domestic  animals  to  do  their  best  unless  their  skins 
are  free  from  dirt,  and  in  a  fresh  and  healthy  condition.  It  is  of 
the  utmost  importance  that  they  be  not  allowed  to  accumulate  a 
winter  coat  of  clotted  manure;  and  it  is  at  least  very  desirable  that 
they  be  daily  thoroughly  carded  or  brushed  from  head  to  foot, 
whenever  sufficient  labor  can  be  commanded.  Better  keep  fewer 
animals  well  groomed  than  to  allow  the  herd  to  remain  in  a  condi- 
33 


512  lIA>'DY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

tion  in  which  it  cannot  make  the  best   use   of  the   expensive  food 
it  consumes. 

2.  Regularity^  especially  in  feeding  and  watering,  is  very  im- 
portant. Animals  will  always  thrive  best  when  the  hours  oi  feed- 
ing are  regularly  established,  so  that  they  will  come  with  full 
appetite  to  each  meal.  In  establishments  where  feeding  is  done 
by  the  clock,  the  animals  will  lie  quietly  down  until  very  nearly 
the  time  for  feeding.  As  the  hour  approaches  they  will  get  up 
up,  eager  and  expectant,  ready  to  attack  their  rations  with  good 
appetite.  If  they  are  fed  sometimes  at  long,  sometimes  at  short 
intervals,  they  will  eat  less,  will  chew  the  cud  less  contentedly, 
and  will  be  generally  restless  and  uneasy,  expecting  something  to 
be  given  them  whenever  a  man  enters  the  stables,  and  when  food 
is  given  them,  eating  it  much  more  daintily. 

3.  Temperature. — Probably  the  first  use  that  the  animal  organ- 
ism makes  of  food  consumed  is  to  appropriate  it  to  maintaining  the 
proper  temperature  of  the  body.  Heat  is,  to  a  certain  extent, 
constantly  given  off  in  respiration  :  air  thrown  out  from  the  lungs 
is  always  warmer  than  when  taken  in.  The  additional  heat  is 
manufactured  in  the  system,  by  the  union  ot  certain  elements  of 
the  food  with  the  oxygen  of  the  air  inhaled.  There  is  very  little 
difference  in  the  temperature  of  the  air  breathed  out  in  cold 
weather  and  in  warm,  in  cold  stables  and  in  warm  ones.  It  the 
air  of  the  stable  is  at  50^,  and  is  exhaled  at  90°,  it  has  taken  40° 
of  heat  from  the  system  j  while  if  it  was  taken  in  at  zero,  it 
would  have  taken  90°  from  the  system.  Probably  this  illustration 
is  not  scientifically  exact,  but  it  sufficiently  exhibits  the  princi- 
ple. The  extra  amount  of  heat  required  to  raise  the  breath  to  the 
standard  temperature  is  produced  by  the  consumption  of  parts  of 
the  food,  which,  if  not  so  wasted,  might  have  gone  to  form  fat  or 
butter  i  hence  we  see  the  importance  of  protecting  our  stock  from 
undue  exposure  to  the  cold.  The  animal  is  surrounded  by  warm 
air,  that  is  to  say,  the  spaces  in  its  hairy  covering  are  filled  with 
air  of  which  the  temperature  is  elevated  by  the  escape  of  heat  from 
the  body.  When  this  air  is  once  sufficiently  warmed,  the  animal's 
coat  preventing  its  rapid  change  or  circulation,  it  loses  its  heat  but 


WINTER    FEEDING    OF    LIVE    STOCK.  513 

slowly,  but  if  a  draft  of  air  or  a  gale  of  wind  is  allowed  to  a2;itate 
this  blanket,  its  warm  air  is  carried  away  and  the  body  constantly 
parts  with  more  heat,  in  order  to  warm  the  colder  fresh  supply. 
The  heat  used  in  this  way  is  formed  by  the  oxidation  of  elements 
of  the  food  in  precisely  the  same  manner  as  in  the  case  of  respira- 
tion ;  consequently,  the  more  we  protect  our  animals  against  the 
rapid  circulation  of  cold  air,  the  more  we  reduce  this  waste  of 
the  heat-producing  elements  which  it  is  our  object  to  convert 
into  fat. 

While,  therefore,  fresh  air  should  be  regularly  supplied,  all  un- 
necessary loss  of  heat  should  be  avoided. 

4.  Exercise. — It  is  difficult  to  determine  what  amount  of  exer- 
cise different  animals  require,  Messrs.  S.  &  D.  Wells,  of  Weth- 
ersfield,  Connecticut,  (who  have  a  valuable  herd  of  Ayrshire  cat- 
tle, which  they  manage  very  judiciously,)  tie  their  cows  in  winter 
quarters  early  in  November,  and  they  never  untie  them  again, 
except  for  calving,  until  the  spring  pastures  are  ready  for  turning 
out.  Some  of  their  animals  remain  fastened  by  the  neck  nearly 
six  months  at  a  time,  yet  they  come  out  in  spring  in  superb  con- 
dition, apparently  not  at  all  injured  by  their  long  repose.  It  may  be 
in  deference  to  an  idea  that  systematic  exercise  is  generally  given 
to  dairy  cattle,  but  without  having  any  positive  reason  for  doing 
so,  I  prefer  that  my  own  animals  should  be  loose  in  the  yard  for 
a  few  hours  on  every  pleasant  day  during  the  winter.  Such  a 
course  certainly  does  no  harm,  and  it  constitutes  a  sort  of  return 
to  a  natural  condition,  which  seems  to  me  very  desirable. 

Horses,  certainly,  and  probably  sheep  also,  are  benefited  by  reg- 
ular exercise  whenever  the  weather  is  not  too  cold. 

5.  Fresh  Water. — By  this  I  do  not  mean  cold  water,  for  proba- 
bly it  would  be  better  in  summer,  and  certainly  it  would  be  better 
in  winter,  that  the  water  should  not  be  cold  enough  to  produce  a 
chill.  It  is  most  important  to  provide  water  that  is  free  from 
organic  impurities,  and  untainted  by  the  drainings  of  barn-yard 
and  dung  heaps.  It  would  be  better,  if  it  can  be  so  arranged,  that 
suitable  water  should  be  always  within  reach  of  the  cattle.  There 
need  be  no  fear  of  their  abusing  their  privilege  and  drinking  im- 


ol4  HANDY-BOOK   OF   HUSBANDRY. 

moderately,  and  we  sliould  guard  against  the  possibility  of  their 
wants  being  occasionally  forgotten. 

6.  Pure  Air. — Hardly  second  in  importance  even  to  nutritious 
food  is  an  abundant  supply  of  pure  air,  at  all  times  and  seasons. 
Animals  kept  in  ill-ventilated  stables,  in  which  the  air  is  impreg- 
nated with  the  carbonic  acid  from  the  breath,  and  ammonia  from 
the  droppings,  can  neither  make  the  best  use  ot  the  food  that  is 
given  them,  nor  preserve  their  bodies  in  rugged  health. 

It  is  impossible  that  there  should  hot  be  always,  even  in  the 
best-regulated  stables,  more  or  less  ammonia  and  more  or  less 
offensive  odor.  All  that  we  can  do  is  to  overcome  the  ill-effect 
of  these,  by  pro\iJing  an  abundant  supply  of  pure  air  trom  out  of 
doors  to  dilute  and  dissipate  them. 

While  this  supply  of  fresh  air  is  a  matter  of  absolute  necessity, 
it  is  hardly  less  important  to  guard  against  strong  currents  blowing 
directly  across  the  animals,  especially  in  cold  weather.  There 
are  many  ways  in  which  stables  may  be  ventilated  without  sub- 
jecting their  inmates  to  draughts.  Those  plans  are  the  best 
which  cause  the  vitiated  air  to  escape  from  near  the  floor  and 
admit  fresh  air  from  above,  but  at  such  distance  from  the  animals 
that  its  current  will  be  diffused  before  it  reaches  them. 

As  far  as  the  economy  of  the  stable  is  concerned,  farm  stock 
may  be  classified  as  follows  : — 

1.  Growing   stock. 

2.  Fattening  stock. 

3.  Milking  stock. 

4.  Working  stock. 

According  to  the  class  to  which  an  animal  belongs,  must  its 
food  and  its  exercise  be  regulated. 

I.  Growing  animals  have  not  only  to  support  the  ordinary 
wastes  of  animal  life,  but  to  lay  up  in  all  of  their  parts  the  material 
that  contributes  to  the  growth  of  their  bodies.  This  requires  the 
greatest  diversity  of  nutritious  elements  in  the  food.  If  a  colt  is 
fed  only  on  roots,  he  will  become  pot-bellied,  lean,  and  defective  in 
his   bony   structure.      In  proportion  as  we  supply  him  with  food 


WINTER    FEEDING    OF    LIVE    STOCK.  515 

containing  more  nitrogen  and  phosphates,  will  his  bones  grow 
large  and  his  muscles  more  full.  If  fed  largely  upon  pea  and  bean 
meal,  his  growth  will  be  much  accelerated  and  his  vigor  increased. 
Oats,  which  are  very  strongly  nutritious,  accomplish  the  same 
effect  to  a  less  degree,  while  owing  to  the  bulkiness  of  the  woody 
fiber  of  the  husk,  their  effect  on  the  digestive  organs  is  better, 
though  of  course  no  grain  should  be  used  as  the  exclusive  food  of 
any  animal.  All  such  nutritious  forage  should  be  accompanied 
with  enough  hay  or  straw  to  form  bulk,  and  keep  the  digestive 
organs  sufficiently  distended.  Indian  corn,  which  contains  a 
large  amount  of  oil  and  starch,  (fattening  materials,)  is  not  nearly 
so  well  adapted  as  oats,  peas,  and  beans  to  the  needs  of  growing 
animals. 

2.  Fattening  stock  has  the  least  amount  of  waste  of  bone  and 
muscle  to  make  up,  since  it  takes  but  little  exercise  and  does  no 
work.  Our  sole  object  is  to  keep  the  animal  in  a  state  of  robust 
health,  so  that  it  consume  and  properly  digest  a  large  amount  of 
food,  and  at  the  same  time  store  up,  in  the  adipose  tissue,  a  large 
proportion  of  fat.  Such  animals  should  receive  s-.  fficient  hay  or 
straw  for  the  proper  distention  of  the  intestines,  and  as  much  fat- 
forming  food  as  they  are  capable  of  thoroughly  digesting.  With 
such  animals  roots  may  be  largely  fed,  the  quantity  of  coarse 
fodder  being  proportionately  reduced,  and  Indian  corn  meal 
or  oil  meal,  may  be  largely  used  with   advantage. 

3.  With  milking  cows,  one  object  should  be  to  reduce  the 
amount  of  exercise  to  the  least  that  will  keep  them  in  a  state  of 
health  ;  to  avoid  all  accumulation  of  fat,  and  to  stimulate  to  the 
utmost  the  secretion  of  milk.  This  is  best  accomplished  by  the 
use  of  rich  and  well-cured  hay,  roots,  and  bran. 

4.  Working  animals  are  constantly  wearing  out  their  bones  and 
muscles,  while  their  vigorous  exercise  causes  them  to  consume 
more  of  their  food  in  respiration  than  do  animals  in  a  state  of  rest. 
Their  requirements  approximate  to  those  of  growing  young  stock, 
the  chief  difference  being,  that  instead  of  supplying  material  to  be 
accumulated  in  the  bones  and  muscles,  we  supply  the  waste  that 
these  have  undergone  in  the  performance  of  labor. 


616  HANDY-BOOK    OF   HUSBANDRY. 

These  are  the  general  principles  on  which  the  feeding  of  ani- 
mals depends.  At  the  first  glance  they  seem  to  suggest  a  simple 
set  of  rules  by  which  the  most  skillful  feeding  should  be  guided. 
But  as  we  analyze  them  more  closely  and  see  how  the  result  is 
influenced  by  a  variety  of  considerations,  especially  bv  the  peculiar 
temperament  of  the  individual  animal,  the  whole  question  becomes 
involved  in  an  intricacy  that  is  thus  far  beyond  our  full  compre- 
hension, and  we  soon  learn  that  no  rules  and  no  theories  on  the 
subject  are  of  much  practical  value.  Certain  general  principles 
are  to  be  borne  always  in  mind,  and  we  should  avoid  their  direct 
violation,  but  beyond  this  we  must  seek  our  only  help  in  individual 
experience  and  close  observation. 

Tliese  general  principles  arc,  so  far  as  they  can  be  simply 
stated,  the  following  : — 

1.  Food  contains  both  fat-forming  (or  heat-producing)  and 
muscle-and-bone-forming  materials. 

2.  The  proportions  of  these  elements  are  different  in  difFerei.t 
kinds  of  food. 

3.  We  shouiQ  give  a  larger  proportion  of  one  or  of  the  other, 
according  to  the  condition  and  requirements  of  the  animal.  That 
is:  a  fattening  animal  should  have  an  excess  of  the  fat- forming 
elements,  and  a  growing  or  a  working  animal  should  have  an 
excess  of  the  muscle-and-bone-forming  elements. 

4.  Animals  subjected  to  excessive  cold  have  use  for  more  heat- 
producing  (or  fat-forming)  material  than  have  those  which  are 
kept  warmly  housed,  or  which  live  in  a  warmer  climate. 

5.  Work,  especially y>/j/  work,  develops  bone  and  muscle,  and 
gives  the  system  a  tendency  to  appropriate  food  to  this  develop- 
ment rather  than  to  the  accumulation  of  fat,  which  the  more  rapid 
and  full  respiration  that  work  induces  causes  the  fat-forming  parts 
of  the  food  to  be  consumed  in  the  production  of  heat,  which  is 
supposed  to  be  the  representative  of  work.  Idleness,  on  the 
other  hand,  lessens  the  muscular  development,  and  induces  the 
production  of  fat. 

6.  The  animal  system  is  susceptible — so  far  as  the  performance 
of  its  functions  is  concerned — of  considerable  cultivation.      That 


WINTER    FEEDING    OF    LIVE    STOCK.  517 

is:  by  careful  attention  to  the  development  of  any  peculiarity, 
generation  after  generation,  it  may  be  increased  and  intensified, 
and  it  will  be  transmitted  from  father  to  son  with  more  or  less 
certainty,  according  to  the  prominence  it  has  attained.  The 
*'  thorouo-h-bred  "  horse  (the  English  race-horse)  is  the  fleetest  of 
the  horse  family,  and  has  wonderful  power  of  endurance — owing, 
largely,  to  the  excessive  development  of  his  lungs  and  blood-ves- 
sels, and  to  the  arrangement  of  these  latter  ;  the  peculiarities  are 
so  much  a  part  of  the  nature  of  this  horse,  that  they  are  not  only 
observable  in  all  thorough-bred  horses  and  mares,  but,  to  a  great 
extent,  in  the  progeny  of  thorough-bred  sires  with  common  dams. 
The  Short-horn  has  a  tendency  to  lay  on  fat  that  has  been  devel- 
oped (and  fixed  as  the  leading  characteristic  of  the  herd)  by  many 
generations  of  breeding  for  a  specific  purpose.  The  Jersey  cow  is 
a  butter  producer — and  nothing  else — because,  for  generations,  she 
has  been  kept  only  for  butter-making.  It  would  be  possible  to 
start  with  a  herd  of  fat  Short-horns  and  in  time  to  make  them 
lean  butter  producers  ;  or  to  breed  a  herd  of  Jerseys  to  the  size 
and  amplitude  of  the  Short-horn. 

7.  Our  success  in  any  branch  of  stock-raising  or  feeding  will 
depend,  very  much,  on  the  skill  with  which  we  adapt  our  food 
and  our  management  to  the  special  characteristics  of  the  particular 
breed  of  animals  we  keep.  Nothing  should  be  done  that  has  a 
tendency  to  divert  the  animal's  organic  activities  from  the  chan- 
nel in  which  they  have  learned  to  flow  : — for  instance,  we  must 
not  work  the  bulls  of  our  dairy  breeds  of  cattle,  for  work  will 
develop  the  breathing  apparatus,  and  increased  breathing  will 
consume,  in  the  production  of  heat,  fat-forming  material  which 
should  have  gone  to  the  increase  of  cream.  This  is  only  a 
single  illustration  of  a  universal  principle,  which  I  can  here  treat 
only  thus  meagerly.  It  underlies  the  whole  question  of  the 
domestication  of  the  animals  which  have  become  useful  to  man, 
and  may  be  roundly  stated  thus  :  —The  difference  between  our 
domestic  animals  and  their  wild  ancestors  is  a  difference  of  devel- 
opment ;  and  this  development  is  entirely  within  the  control  of 
the  farmer.      He    may  allow  his   flocks  and   herds  to  retrograde 


518  HANDY-BOOK    OF   HUSBANDRY. 

toward  the  wild  type  ;  he  may  develop  still  further  their  useful 
qualities  ;  or  he  may  give  prominence  to  some  feature  that  is  now 
inconspicuous. 

The  really  practical  farmer  should  bear  the  foregoing  in  mind, 
and  he  would  be  greatly  benefited  by  making  himself  familiar 
with  all  that  is  known  of  the  "  physiology  "  of  farm  animals.  At 
the  same  time,  no  amount  of  theoretical  knowledge  (book-farming) 
can  take  the  place  of  practical  skill  and  observation.  One  must 
know,  not  only  the  general  rules  of  the  stable,  and  what  is  the 
best  food  and  the  best  management  for  the  different  results  aimed 
at,  but  the  temperaments,  habits,  and  peculiarities  of  different 
individuals  of  the  herd. 

This  sort  of  "stable  wisdom  "  onlv  a  man  of  tact,  vigilance, 
and  close  observation  can  attain  to.  Tempered  by  such  knowl- 
edge as  may  be  readily  gathered  from  books,  it  is  the  corner-stone 
of  the  farmer's  fortune.  He  must — in  his  breeding  and  in  his 
feeding — try  to  develop,  to  the  utmost,  the  most  desirable  quali- 
ties of  each  animal  under  his  care.  Beginning  with  a  good  father 
and  a  good  mother, — whether  it  be  a  question  of  a  horse  or  only  of 
a  chicken, — and  ending  with  the  best  possible  treatment  through- 
out its  life,  he  should  make  each  animal  an  object  of  special 
study  and  strive  to  adapt  it  as  perfectly  as  he  can  to  the  service 
he  intends  it  for, — closely  observing  its  peculiar  temperament. 
In  this  way  will  he  get  from  each  animal  the  greatest  profit  it  is 
capable  of  returning. 

The  principles  which  govern  the  use  of  nutriment  bv  all  kinds 
of  farm  stock  being  the  same,  I  cannot  better  illustrate  the 
practice  that  is  to  be  recommended  for  all,  than  by  the  following 
quotation  from  Mr.  flint's  work  : — " 

"  Keep  the  cows  constantly  in  good  condition^  ought,  therefore,  to 
"  be  the  motto  of  every  dairy  farmer,  posted  up  over  the  barn- 
*'  door,  and  over  the  stalls,  and  over  the  milk-room,  and  repeated 
'*  to  the  bovs  whenever  there  is  danger  of  fors;etting  it.  It  is  the 
''  great  secret  of  success,  and  the  difference  between  success  and 

*  Milch  Cows  and  Dairy  Fanning. 


WINTER    FEEDING    OF    LIVE    STOCK.  519 

*'  failure  turns  upon  it.  Cows  in  milk  require  more  food  in  pro- 
"  portion  to  their  size  and  weight  than  either  oxen  or  young  cattle. 

"  In  order  to  keep  cows  in  milk  well  and  economically,  reg- 
"  ularity  is  next  in  importance  to  a  full  supply  of  wholesome 
"  and  nutritious  food.  The  healthy  animal  stomach  is  a  very  nice 
"  chronometer,  and  it  is  of  the  utmost  importance  to  observe 
"  regular  hours  in  feeding,  cleaning,  and  milking.  This  is  a  point, 
"  also,  in  which  very  many  farmers  are  at  fault — feeding  v;hen- 
"  ever  it  happens  to  be  convenient.  The  cattle  are  thus  kept  in 
"  a  restless  condition,  constantly  expecting  food  when  the  keeper 
"enters  the  barn,  while,  if  regular  hours  are  strictly  adhered  to, 
"  they  know  exactly  when  they  are  to  be  fed,  and  they  rest  quietly 
"  till  the  time  arrives.  Go  into  a  well-regulated  dairy  establish- 
"  ment  an  hour  before  the  time  of  feeding,  and  scarcely  an  animal 
"will  rise  to  its  feet;  while,  if  it  happens  to  be  the  hour  of 
"  feeding,  the  whole  herd  will  be  likely  to  rise  and  seize  their  food 
"  with  an  avidity  and  relish  not  to  be  mistaken. 

"  With  respect  to  the  exact  routine  to  be  pursued,  no  rule 
"  could  be  prescribed  which  would  apply  to  all  cases  ;  and  each 
"individual  must  be  governed  much  by  circumstances,  both  in 
"  respect  to  the  particular  kinds  of  feed  at  different  seasons  of  the 
*'  year,  and  the  system  of  feeding.  I  have  found  in  my  own 
"  practice,  and  in  the  practice  of  the  most  successful  dairymen, 
"  that,  in  order  to  encourage  the  largest  secretion  of  milk  in  stalled 
"cows,  one  of  the  best  courses  is,  to  feed  in  the  morning,  either 
"  at  the  time  of  milking — which  I  prefer — or  immediately  after, 
"  with  cut  feed,  consisting  of  hay,  oats,  millet,  or  corn-stalks, 
"  mixed  with  shorts,  and  Indian,  linseed,  or  cotton-seed  meal, 
"  thoroughly  moistened  with  water.  If  in  winter,  hot  or  warm 
"  water  is  far  better  than  cold.  If  given  at  milking-time,  the 
"  cows  will  generally  give  down  the  milk  more  readily.  The 
"  stalls  and  mangers  ought  always  to  be  well  cleaned  out  first. 

"  Roots  and  long  hay  may  be  given  during  the  day  ;  and  at  the 
*' evening  milking,  or  directly  after,  another  generous  meal  of  cut 
"  feed,  well  moistened  and  mixed,  as  in  the  morning.  No  very 
"  concentrated  food,  like  grains  alone  or  oil-cakes,  should,  it  seems 


520  HANDY-BOOK   OF   HUSBANDRY. 

"  to  me,  be  fed  early  in  the  morning  on  an  empty  stomach,  though 
"it  is  sanctioned  by  the  practice  in  the  London  milk-daiiies. 
"  The  processes  of  digestion  go  on  best  when  the  stomach  is 
"sufficiently  distended;  and  for  this  purpose  the  bulk  of  food  is 
"almost  as  important  as  the  nutritive  qualities.  The  flavor  of 
"  some  roots,  as  cabbages  and  turnips,  is  more  apt  to  be  imparted 
"  to  the  flesh  and  milk  when  fed  on  an  empty  stomach  than 
"otherwise.  After  the  cows  have  been  milked,  and  have  finished 
"  their  cut  feed,  thev  are  carded  and  curried  down,  in  well- 
"  managed  dairies,  and  then  either  watered  in  the  stall,  which  in 
"  very  cold  or  stormv  weather  is  far  preferable,  or  turned  out  to 
"  water  in  the  yard.  When  thev  are  out,  if  they  are  let  out  at 
"  all,  the  stables  are  put  in  order  ;  and,  after  tying  them  up,  they 
"  are  fed  with  long  hav,  and  left  to  themselves  till  the  time  of 
"  next  feeding.  This  may  consist  of  roots,  such  as  cabbages, 
*' beets,  carrots,  or  turnips  sliced,  or  of  potatoes,  a  peck,  or,  if  the 
"  cows  are  very  large,  a  half-bushel  each,  and  cut  feed  again  at 
"  the  evening  milking,  as  in  the  morning,  after  which  water  in  the 
"  stall,  if  possible. 

"  The  less  cows  are  exposed  to  the  cold  of  winter,  the  better. 
"  Thev  eat  less,  thrive  better,  and  give  more  milk,  when  kept 
"  housed  all  the  time,  than  when  exposed  to  the  cold.  Caird 
*' mentions  a  case  where  a  herd  of  cows,  which  had  been  usually 
"  supplied  from  troughs  and  pipes  in  the  stalls,  were,  on  account 
"of  an  obstruction  in  the  pipes,  obliged  to  be  turned  out  twice  a 
"  dav  to  be  watered  in  the  yard.  The  quantity  of  milk  instantly 
"decreased,  and  in  three  days  the  falling  oft"  became  very  con- 
*■'■  siderable.  After  the  pipes  were  mended,  and  the  cows  again 
"  watered   as   before,  in  their  'stalls,  the  flow   of  milk  returned. 

"  This,  however,  will  be  governed  much  by  the  weather  ;  for  in 
*'  very  mild,  warm  days  it  may  be  judicious  not  only  to  let  them 
"  out,  but  to  allow  them  to  remain  out  for  a  short  time,  to  cx- 
"  ercise. 

"  Any  one  can  arrange  the  hour  for  the  several  processes  named 
*' above,  to  suit  himself;  but,  when  once  fixed,  let  it  be  rigidly 
"  and   regularly  followed.      If    the    regular    and    full    feeding  be 


WINTER    FEEDING    OF    LIVE    STOCK, 


521 


"  neglected  for  even  a  day,  the  yield  of  milk  will  immediately 
"decline,  and  it  will  be  very  difficult  to  restore  it.  It  may  safely 
"  be  asserted,  as  the  result  of  many  trials  and  long  practice,  that 
"a  larger  flow  of  milk  follows  a  complete  svstem  of  regularity  in 
"  this  respect  than  from  a  higher  feeding  where  this  system  is  not 
"  adhered  to. 

"  One  prime  object  which  the  dairyman  should  keep  constantly 
"  in  view  is,  to  maintain  the  animal  in  a  sound  and  healthy  con- 
*'  dition.  Without  this,  no  profit  can  be  expected  from  a  milch 
"  cow  for  any  considerable  length  of  time  ;  and,  with  a  view  to 
•"'  this,  there  should  be  an  occasional  change  of  food.  But,  in 
"  making  changes,  great  care  is  required  to  supply  an  equal  amount 
"  of  nourishment,  or  the  cow  falls  off  in  flesh,  and  eventually  in 
"  milk.  We  should  therefore  bear  in  mind  that  the  food  con- 
"  sumed  goes  not  alone  to  the  secretion  of  milk,  but  also  to  the 
"  growth  and  maintenance  of  the  bony  structure,  the  flesh,  the 
"  blood,  the  fat,  the  skin,  and  the  hair,  and  in  exhalations  from 
»  the  body." 

So  much  of  the  value  of  any  food  depends  on  the  condition  in 
which,  and  the  circumstances  under  which  it  is  fed,  that  it  is 
impossible  to  make  a  comparison  which  shall  at  all  times  hold 
good  ;  but  the  following  tables  from  Boussingault,  giving  as  it 
does  the  results  of  a  number  of  carefully  conducted  experiments, 
will  be  found  valuable  : — 


Table,  showing  the  comparative  difference  between  good  hay  and  the 
articles  mentioned  beloio,  as  food  for  stock — being  the  mean  of 
experiment  and  theory. 


100  lbs.  of  hay  are 

equal  to 

100  lbs.  of  hay  are  equal  to 

■L-j%  lbs 

green  Indian  corn. 

54 

lbs 

rye. 

441   '• 

lye   straw. 

46 

wheat. 

560    " 

wheat     " 

59 

oats. 

164  " 

oat           " 

45 

peas  and  beans  mixed. 

180    " 

barley    " 

64 

buckwheat. 

1 55     '• 

pea         " 

57 

Indian  corn. 

200     " 

buckwheat  straw. 

68 

acorns. 

201     " 

taw  potatoes. 

los 

wheat  bran. 

175     " 

boiled     '• 

109 

rye 

3J9     " 

mangel-wurzeL 

167 

wheat,  pea,  and  oat  chaff. 

504     " 

turnips. 

'79 

rye  and  barley,  mixed, 

JOO      " 

carrots. 

622 


HANDY-BOOK    OF   HUSBANDRY. 


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oo     t^    r^ 


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tti     u      -3      -3       "       —       ^ 

£   ^   oi   o:   o:   o   u 


s  5 


WINTER    FEEDING    OF    LIVE    STOCK.  523 

STEAMING    FOOD. 

I  have  now  (1870)  steamed  all  of  the  hay  and  most  of  the  grain 
that  has  been  fed  out  at  Ogden  Farm,  and  I  do  not  hesitate  to 
recommend  the  practice  to  all  who  are  so  circumstanced  that  they 
can  do  the  work  systematically. 

For  want  of  space  I  will  simply  detail  our  modus  oper-ajull^  and 
others  will  be  able,  readily,  to  make  such  modifications  as  may  be 
necessary  to  meet  the  requirements  of  their  own  cases. 

We  have  about  fifty  head  of  stock,  and  I  find  that — averaging 
them  all,  old  and  young — it  costs  not  more  than  fifteen  cents  per 
day  to  teed  them,  including  the  cost  of  grain,  labor,  fuel,  wear 
and  tear  of  machinery,  etc.  Kept  in  good  condition,  as  they  are, 
this  is  low  enough. 

By  referring  to  the  plans  of  the  Ogden  Farm  barn,  the  reader 
will  be  able  to  understand  the  following  description  of  the  arrange- 
ment of  the  machinery  and  fixtures.  The  engine  (six-horse 
power)  and  the  boiler  (ten-horse)  stand  in  a  lean-to  shed  on  the 
north  side  of  the  barn,  (back  of  the  ox-stalls.)  The  "  counter- 
shaft," by  which  the  power  is  communicated,  is  at  the  west  end 
of  the  feed-room,  about  seven  feet  from  the  floor.  One  end  of 
this  shaft  runs  out  through  the  north  side  of  the  building  and  is 
connected  with  the  driving-wheel  of  the  engine  by  a  belt.  The 
'cutting-machine  stands  on  the  hay  floor,  with  its  knife-end  toward 
the  feed-room  and  about  four  feet  distant  from  it.  Power  is 
carried  to  it  by  a  belt  from  a  pulley  on  the  counter-shaft.  The 
steaming-chamber  occupies  what  was  formerly  a  pair  of  ox- stalls 
on  the  cattle  floor.  It  reaches  to  the  ceiling,  and  is  entered  by  a 
hatchway  through  the  floor  of  the  feed-room.  It  also  has  a  side- 
door  opening  on  the  gangway,  through  which  the  feed-car  passes. 
The  steam  is  supplied,  under  a  loosely-laid  false  bottom,  by  a  pipe 
leading;  from  the  boiler. 

We  run  the  engine  three  or  four  hours  one  day  in  the  v/eek — 
cutting  about  three  tons  of  long  fodder,  which  usually  consists  of 
hay,  straw,  and  corn-stalks  in  about  equal  parts.  One  half  of  this 
is  put  into  the  chamber  on  the  day  of  cutting,  and  the  other  half  is 


524  HANDY-BOOK    OF   HUSBANDRY. 

laid  awav  until  the  next  stcam'ng  dav.     We  cut  and  steam  on  Satur 
days,  and  hrc  up  again,  for  steaming  onlv,  on  Wednesdays.      The     , 
cut  toddcr  is  thoroughly  wetted,  and  has  the  allowance  of  bran  or     \ 
meal  well  mixed  through  it.     It  is  then  put  through  the  hatchway     ] 
into    the   chamber    and    trampled    down.       Three    or    four    times 
during  the  filling  of  the  box,  the    steam  is    turned  on  and  allowed 
to  flow  until  it  appears    at    the    hatchway.      Xhis   scryes  to  soften 
the  mass  and  allow  it  to   pack  more  closely.      When  the  chamber 
is  quite  full,  the    hatch    is  closed  and  keyed  down,  and  a  full  head 
of  steam  is    allowed    to  flow  until  it    blows  out  hot  from  the  slight 
openings  about  the  hatch  and  the  lower  door.     This  usually  takes 
from  an  hour  and  a   half  to  two  hours, — generally  in  the  eyening. 
The    steam   is   then    turned  ofF  and  the  mass   is  allowed   to   cook 
itself,  by  the   accumulated    heat,  until   morning,  when  any  musti- 
ness  or  mouldiness  of  the  long  fodder  is  destroyed,  and  the  whole 
is  permeated  with   the  flayor  and  odor  of  the   bran  or  meal  mixed 
with  it. 

The  aboye-described  operation  is  yery  simple,  and  only  requires 
precaution  on  two  points  :  — 

1.  The  steaming-box  or  chamber  must  haye  a  weak  point  at 
which  the  steam  ma\  find  its  way  out  without  straining  the 
permanent  parts.  This  will  usually  supply  itself  in  a  little  im- 
perfection of  fitting  about  the  doors. 

2.  The  fodder  must  be  well  moistened  before  it  is  put  into 
the  chamber,  for  t/ry  hay  zvtll  not  cook. 

My  chamber,  which  has  a  capacity  of  about  425  cubic  feet, 
holds,  if  packed  full,  enough  food  to  supply  my  whole  stock 
for  rather  more  than  four  days.  It  is  made  with  matched  spruce 
flooring  nailed  on  both  sides  of  6-inch  joists,  and  to  the  under 
side  of  the  floor-joists  aboye.  The  spaces  above  and  on  the  four 
sides  are  packed  full  with  sawdust.  The  floor  is  covered  with 
galvanized  iron,  with  soldered  joints,  turned  up  a  little  at  the 
sides.  On  the  bottom  3x4  joists  are  laid,  and  on  these  there  are 
loose  strips  of  board  about  six  inches  wide,  laid  with  half-inch 
spaces  between  them.  The  steam  is  admitted  below  this  loose 
bottom  and  rises  through  its  spaces. 


WINTER    FEEDING    OF    LIVE    STOCK.  525 

As  to  the  profit  of  steaming,  I  am  not  prepared  by  definite 
figures  to  assert  that  the  usual  estimate  is  correct,  that  one-third 
of  the  food  is  saved,  though,  after  two  seasons'  careful  observa- 
tion, I  fully  believe  it.  This  I  am  sure  of:  that  corn-stalks  that 
have  moulded  in  the  stack,  musty  oats  which  have  been  cut 
green  and  badly  cured,  and  smoky  hay, — nearly  the  whole  of 
which  would  be  rejected  if  fed  uncooked, —  are  eaten  with  avidity 
and  with  evident  benefit  to  the  stock. 

On  the  score  of  health  and  condition,  this  system  is  all  that 
could  be  desired.  In  only  two  or  three  instances  have  cases  of 
"scouring"  occurred,  and  these  were  immediately  remedied  by 
the  substitution  of  long  hay  for  a  few  days.  I  question  whether 
there  is  any  advantage  in  cooking  roots.  There  is  a  freshness 
about  these  in  their  raw  state  that  is  perhaps  beneficial, — and  is 
surely  very  acceptable  to  stock. 

It  would  be  an  easy  (and  a  pleasant)  task  to  write  a  book  as 
large  as  this  one  on  the  single  subject  of  this  chapter.  To  enter 
with  any  thing  like  fullness  into  details  in  this  limited  space, 
would  be  impossible,  and  I  have  preferred  to  devote  the  ^tw  pages 
that  could  be  spared  for  the  purpose  rather  to  general  principles 
than  to  minute  instructions.  What  I  have  chiefly  tried  to  accom- 
plish has  been  to  so  state  a  few  of  the  leading  points,  that  my  read- 
ers should  be  induced  to  seek  fuller  information  in  works  devoted 
especially  to  physiological  questions,  and  to  the  economy  of  the 
stable. 

It  is  proper  to  say  that,  so  far  as  our  own  practice  is  concerned,  we 
have  steamed  less  and  less  every  year  since  we  began  to  have  good 
early  cut  hay  from  our  own  land.  We  still  use  it  for  corn-fodder  and 
for  purchased  hay  which  is  not  of  the  best  quality.  For  all  such 
material  as  this  the  process  is  decidedly  profitable;  for  the  prepara- 
tion o'i  first-rate  hay  it  is  not  needed.  !B-eally  good  hay  is  good 
enousrh. 


CHAPTER    XVIII 


USEFUL    TABLES     FOR     FARMERS. 


The  following  tables,  collected  from  various  sources,  contain 
information  to  which  it  will  be  especiilly  "  handy "  for  every 
farmer  and  gardener  to  have  easy  access.  Of  course,  much  of 
their  contents  it  would  be  impossible  for  me  to  verify  by  actual 
experience,  but  they  are  all  taken  from  standard  authorities,  and 
are  universally  accepted  as  correct. 

Table,  showing  tlie  square  feet  and  the  Jeet  square  of  the  fractions 

of  an  acre. 


Fractions  of 
an  acre. 

Square  feet. 

Feet  square. 

Fractions  of 
an  acre. 

Square  feet. 

Feet  square. 

.1 

1  D 

Z7Z2t 

Sit 

\ 

11780 

I47t 

i 

544  S 

7Ji 

I 

45560 

loSi 

i 

10890 

I04i 

z 

87110 

i9Si 

\ 

14520 

izo} 

T AZI.Z,  showing  the  number  of  hills  or  plants  on  an  acre  oj  land,  for 
any  distance  apart,  from  10  inches  to  d  feet — the  lateral  and 
longitudinal  distances  being  unequal. 


0  in. 

11  in. 

IS  in. 

iS  in. 

10  in. 

ift. 

2jft. 

J  ft. 

5ift. 

4  ft. 

4*  ft. 

sft. 

«n. 

6  ft. 

10  in 

>i7i6 

11  •• 

;ii7i 

4H'» 

15   •■ 

nil? 

54848 

1787S 

18   •• 

1**48 

19040 

2J2J2 

I9}6c 

10  •• 

!'r>j 

161  ;6 

IC908 

«74i4 

1 5681 

ifcei 

iii}3 

11780 

17414 

14520 

13068 

1 0890 

u  •• 

o^jS,    17414 

>}9J9 

11616 

•0454 

8712 

69(x 

J     '• 

'7414 

14520 

11616 

</.Sc 

87IZ 

7260 

5!ioi' 

4840 

Ji  •• 

'nJ5 

Ii4t6 

995} 

82c  7 

-467 

6225 

497' 

4148 

5565 

4     •• 

ipSS 

10S90 

8712 

72^)0 

65J4 

544!: 

4}5< 

}6jo 

3111 

1711 

Ak  •■ 

Il5i6 

9680 

7744 

645? 

5808 

484c 

?ii7: 

3126 

1767 

2420 

1151 

5      • 

'0454 

8711 

<kA, 

5808 

5227 

4556 

US4 

2904 

148.. 

1178 

1936 

1741 

Si  ■• 

9504 

7910 

6?  ,6 

528c 

4751 

3960 

}i68 

164c 

1261 

1980 

1760 

•584 

1440 

8711 

7260 

5808 

4840 

4JS<^ 

j6jo 

1904 

1420 

1074 

1865 

161 3 

1452 

1320 

IlIO 

USEFUL  TABLES  FOR  FARMERS. 


527 


Table,  showing  the  number  of  plants,  hills,  or  trees  contained  in  an 
acre  at  equal  distances  apart,  from  3  inches  up  to  66  feet. 


Distance  apart.  No.  of  plants. 

J  inches  by  j  inches 696.960 

4      ■■        by  4     ■•        591.040 

6      "        by  6     "        174.240 

9      "        by  9     "        77.440 

1  foot  by  1  toot 45, 560 

\\  feet  by  I j  feet \<).\(jo 

z  teet  by  l  foot 21.780 

I    '■     by  2  feet 10.890 

2|  '•     by  :i  "    6,960 

J    '•     by  I  foot 14. 5 -o 

3    "     by  2  feet 7, 260 

3  "     by  J     ■'    4.840 

3i  •■     by  3i  "    j.555 

4  ■■     by  I  foot 10,890 

4    '•     by  2  feet 5,44  5 

4    "     by  J     ••     },6jo 

4  '■     by  4     ••    2,722 

4i  "     by  4i  "     1,151 

5  ••     by  I  foot    8,7 1 1 

5    '•     by  2  feet 4,356 

5    "     by  3     -     2,904 

S    ■■     by  4     "     2,178 

5    '•     by  5     ••     1,742 

Si"     by  si  "     1,417 


Distance  apart.  No.  of  plants. 

6  feet  by    6  feet l.zio 

(■■i  "  by    6i  ••  1.051 

7  •'  by    7    "  S81 

8  "  by    8    "  680 

9  "  by    9    "  537 

10  "  by  10    "  43; 

11  "  by  II    " 360 

12  "  by  II    "  302 

'!     ■■  by  13     •'  257 

14  "  by  14    "  222 

1 5  ■'  by  15    "  193 

16  '•  by  16    •'  170 

16J   •'  by  iCi  •'  160 

17  '•  by  17    "  150 

18  '■  by  1 8    ■'  1 34 

19  "  by  19    "  120 

20  ■'  by  20    '■  108 

1;     "  by  25    "  69 

30     '•  by  30    "  48 

33     '•  by  33    "  40 

40     '•  by  40    "  27 

50     '•  by  50    "  ;  17 

60     ■'  by  60    "  12 

66     "  bv  66    "  10 


T.^BLE,  showing   the   quantity    of  garden    seeds    required   to  plant   a 

given  space. 


Designation. 
Asparagus. 


Roots 

Eng.  D'.varf  Beans.. . 
French         '" 
Beans,  pole,  large. .. 
■'         "        small.. 

Beets 

Broccoli  and  Kale... 

Cabbage  

Cauliflower 

Carrot 

Celery 

Cucumber 

Cress 

Egg  Plant 

Endive 

Leek 

Lettuce 

Melon . . 

Nasturtium 

Onion 

Okra 

Parsley 

Parsnip 

Peppers 

Peas 

Pumpkin 

Radish 

Salsify 

Spinage 

Squash 

Tomaio 

Turnip 

Water  Melon 

34 


Space  and  quantity  of  seeds. 
oz.  produces   1000  plants,  and  requires  a  bed  12  feet  square. 
000  plant  a  bed  4  feet  wide  225  feet  long, 
quart  plants  from  100  to  150  feet  of  row. 

'■         "        250  or  350  feet  of  row. 

"         "        100  hills. 

"         "        300     "      or  250  feet  of  row. 
o  lbs.  to  the  acre  ;   i  oz.  plants  150  feet  of  row. 
oz.  plants  2500  plants,  and  requires  40  square  feet  of  ground. 
Early  sorts  same  as  broccoli,  and  require  60  square  feet  of  ground. 
The  same  as  cabbage. 
oz.  to  150  of  row. 

oz.  gives  7000  plants,  and  requires  8  square  feet  of  ground, 
oz.  for  150  hills. 
oz.  sows  a  bed  t6  feet  square, 
oz.  gives  2000  plants. 

oz.     "      30CX)       "       and  requires  So  feet  of  ground, 
oz.     "      2000       "       and        '•        60     '■  '• 

oz.      "      7000       "       and        "        seed  bed  of  120  feet, 
oz.  for  120  hills. 
oz.  sows  25  feet  of  row. 
oz.    .'•     200    •'  •' 

oz.     "     200    "  " 

oz.     "     200    "  " 

oz.     "     250    "  " 

oz.  gives  2500  plants, 
quart  sows  120  feet  of  row. 
oz.  to  50  hills, 
oz.  to  100  feet, 
oz.  to  150     ■'    of  row. 
oz.  to  200     " 
oz.  to  75  hills. 

oz.  gives  2500  plants,  requiring  seed  bed  of  80  feet, 
oz.  to  2000  feet, 
oz.  to  50  hills. 


528 


HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDliY, 


Table,  showing  the  ipiantity  of  seed  required  to  the  acre. 


Designation.  Uuanlity  of  seed. 

Wheat I J  to  z  bush. 

Barley \\  to  i\  " 

Oats 1     to  4 

Rye I     to  2  " 

Buckwheat J  to   ij  " 

Millet I     toll 

Corn    J  to  I  " 

Beans I     to  z  '' 

Peas 2i  to  5j  •' 

^' emp I      to   I J  " 

Flax 1   to  1 

Rice i     to  i\ 


I       Designation.  Quantity  of  seed. 

Broom   Corn i    to      i]  buih. 

Potatoes y  to   lo       " 

Timothy ii  to  Z4  quarts. 

I  Must.ird 8  to  zo 

I  Herd   Crass ii  to    i6 

I  Flat  Turnip z  to      j      lbs. 

I  Red  Clover lo  to   i6 

I  White  Clover }   to     4 

j  Blue  Grass 10  to  ly       " 

Orchard  Grass zo  to   jo       " 

!  Carrots 4  to     5       " 

Parsnips 6  to     8       " 


Tablh,  shozving  the  quantity  per  acre  zrhen  planted  in  rows  or  drills. 


Broom  Corn I     to   I )  bush. 

Beans 1)  to  2        '• 

Peas I  ^  to  z       '• 


Onions 4  to   j    lbs. 

Carrots z  to   2J  " 

Parsnips 4  to   5     " 

Beets .....4  to  6     " 


Tablf.,  showing  the  number  of  seeds  in  one  pound,  and  weight  per  bushel. 


Wheat 

Barley 

Oats 

Rye 

Vetches 

Lentils 

Beans 

Peas 

Flax  seed 

Turnip  seed 

Rape  seed 

Mustard  (white) 

Cabbage  seed 

Mangel-wurzel 

Parsnip  seed 

Carrot  seed 

Lucern  seed 

Clover  (red) 

"       (white) 

Rye-grass  (perennial) 

"  (Italian)  .. 
Sweet  vernal  grass 


No.  or 

No.  lbs. 

Seeds  per  lb. 

per  bush. 

IO,JOO 

58  to  64 

>y,4oo 

48  to    56 

20,000 

j8  to  41 

Z},000 

56  to  60 

8,joo 

60  to  6} 

8,100 

y8  to  60 

600  to    I.JOO 

60  to  65 

1800  to  1,000 

60  to  65 

108,000 

50  to  60 

'JS.ooo 

;o  to   56 

118,000 

50  to   56 

7S,ooo 

S7 

118,000 

51 

14.600 

10  to   14 

97,000 

'4 

irz.ooo 

9 

105.000 

58  to  60 

149. 6cx) 

60  to  6} 

686,400 

59  to  6z 

IH.000 

zo  to  z8 

3.Jl,000 

ij  to   18 

9ZJ.OOO 

8 

USEFUL  TABLES  FOR  FARMERS. 


529 


Table,  shoziirig  the  number  of  rails,  stakes,  and  riders  required  for 
each  lo  rods  offence. 


Length 

of  rail. 

Deflection 

Crom  right 

line. 

Length 
of  panel. 

Number 
of  panels. 

Feet. 

Number  0 

f  rails  for  eac 

h  10  rods. 

e  2 

"o      --> 

XI    0   c 

Feet. 

Feet. 

Feet. 

5  rails  high. 

lOJ 

69 

6  rails  high. 

7  rails  high. 

e:h-c« 
z 

\ 

I6i 

6 

7 
8 

8 
10 

IZ 

zoi 
i3i 

99 

S4 

144 
116 

95 

r- 
34 

z8 

ZI 

17 
14 

Table,  showing  the  number  of  rails  and  posts  required  for  each  lo  rods 
of  post  and  rail  fence. 


Length 
of  rail. 

Length 
of  panel. 

'0  ^ 

^ 

Number  of  rails  for  each  10  rods. 

■a   c 
Z 

z 

Feet. 

Feet. 

5  rails  high. 

6  rails  high. 

7  rails  high. 

S  rails  high. 

10 

8 

zc| 

ZI 

103 

iz; 

144 

I6s 

IZ 

10 

Iti 

17 

S3 

99 

116 

135 

14 

IZ 

>3i 

14 

69 

84 

95 

109 

16J 

14J 

Hi 

IZ 

57 

69 

Si 

93 

Table,  showing  the  number  of  loads  of  manure  and  the  number  of  heaps 
to  each  load  required  to  each  acre,  the  heaps  at  given  distances  apart. 


Distance 
of 

NUMBER 

DF    HEAPS    IN    A    LOAD. 

heaps  apart, 

in  yards. 

I 

z 

3         1       4 

5 

6 

7 

S 
67 

9 

10 

3 

538 

Z69 

179 

134 

108 

8s* 

77 

60 

54 

3i 

395 

168 

IJZ 

99 

79 

66 

5t* 

49* 

44 

3^* 

4 

Z03 

151 

101 

75* 

6ci 

5ci 

43i 

37i 

33* 

3c} 

4* 

139 

IZO 

79* 

60 

47i 

J9J 

34i 

30 

2(i 

14 

5 

194 

97 

6^i 

4Si 

38i 

3-i 

17* 

14i 

21I 

Hi 

5i 

160 

80 

53i 

40 

V- 

z6} 

zzi 

20 

I7t 

16 

6 

131 

67 

44  J 

33} 

Z7 

"i 

>9i 

i6i 

15 

13* 

ti 

115 

57i 

38i 

z8/ 

13 

19 

l6i 

14* 

12) 

11} 

7 

99 

4ci 

33 

24} 

19} 

iti 

14 

12} 

11 

10 

7* 

86 

43 

z8} 

2li 

i7i 

I4i 

IZ} 

Id 

S* 

8* 

8 

75i 

37f 

iJi 

'9 

>5} 

IZ} 

lOf 

a 

fc* 

7* 

8i 

67 

35i 

"i 

16} 

I3i 

ni 

9* 

8* 

7* 

6} 

9 

60 

30 

zo 

15 

IZ 

10 

«* 

1\ 

6J 

6 

9* 

531 

Z6J. 

IS       1       13I 

10} 

9 

71 

f'i 

6 

Si 

10 

48i 

24I 

16}       '          IZ 

9i 

8 

7 

6 

5* 

4i 

630 


IIANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 


Taple,  showing  the  relative  values  of  decomposed  vegetables  as  manures, 
from  the  inorganic  matter  they  contain. 

Inorganic  Matter, 
lbs.         lbs. 

ton   Wheat  Straw  made  into  manure  returns  to  the  soil 70  to  }(iO 

100  to  I  So 

'  "  "  100  to  100 

'  "  "  100  to  izo 

"  "  "  100  to  no 

"  "  too  to  I  JO 

'  "  "  50  to  too 

'  "  "  400 


Oat 

Hay  " 

Barley      "  " 

Pea  "  " 

Bean         "  " 

Rye  "  " 

Dry  Potato-tops  " 

Dry    1  urnip-tops  " 

Rape  Cake  " 

Malt  Dust  " 

Dried  Seaweed  " 


. . . J70 
..  iio 
...  180 
..  560 
J»hn  I  ton. 


Table,  showing  the  relative  values  of  decomposed  vegetables  as  manures, 
from  the  nitrogen  they  contain. 


100  lbs.  of  farm 

yard  manure  is 

equal  to 

ijo  lbs.   Wheat  Straw 

iVl 

anure. 

80 

lbs 

Fresh  Seaweed             Manure. 

150     ••     Oat             " 

iO 

Dried 

180     "     Barley 

'• 

26 

'■ 

Bran  of  Wheat  or  Corn    " 

8j     '■     B  kwhcal  " 

" 

>} 

" 

Mall  Dust                            " 

45     '■     Pea 

" 

8 

" 

Rape  Cake                        " 

50    '^     W  heat  Chaff 

" 

250 

'• 

Pine  Sawdust                      " 

80     "     Green  Grass 

" 

180 

'• 

Oak 

75     "     Potato  Tops 

" 

IS 

" 

Coal  Soot 

Boujsingault. 

Table,  showing  the  labor  one  horse  is  able  to  perform  at  different  rates 
oj  speed  on  canals,  railroads,  and  turnpikes.    Drawing  force,  83^  lbs. 


Duration  of  day's 
work — hours. 

Useful  effect  for  l  day  in  tons,  drawn  i  mile. 

Speed  per  hour. 
Miles. 

On  canal — tons. 

On  a  railroad — tons.!  On  a  turnpike,.tons. 

2i 

Hi 

5ZO 

115                                14 

J 

8 

i4} 

9Z 

12 

\\ 

6 

154 

82 

10 

4 

4i 

101 

71 

9 

5 

■^h 

51 

57 

7-3 

6 

1 

30 

48 

6 

7 

«* 

>9 

4« 

5 

% 

'* 

11.8 

J6 

4-5 

9 

A 

9- 

3» 

4- 

10 

\ 

6.5 

z8.8 

J.6 

USEFUL    TABLES    FOR    FARMERS, 


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\.  .H  C      3  -a 

«  S  i;  ■=  -5.  " 

i    :£  <J  -o  ^  H 

I  5 


USEFUL  TABLES  FOR  FARMERS. 


533 


Average    composilion,   per    cent,    and  per    ton,    of  various    kinds   of 
agricultural  produce,  etc. 


Linseed  cake  . .. , 
Cotton-seed  cake 

Rape  cake 

Linseed  

Beans 

Peas 

Tares , 

Lentils 

Malt  dust 

Locust  beans 

Indian  meal  . 

VV  heat 

Barley    

Malt 

Oats  .    

Fine  pollard*. . . 
Coarse  poUardt. 
Wheat  bran    . . . 

Clover  hay 

Meadow  hay  ... 

Bean  straw 

Pe  I  straw 

Wheat  straw.. . 

Barley  straw 

Oat  straw 

Mangel-wurzel  . 
Swedish  turnips. 
Common  turnips 

Potatoes 

Carrots 

Parsnips 


PER   CENT. 


88 

89. o 
89.0 
90.0 
84. o 
84. o 
84.5 
88. o 
94.0 
85.0 
88. o 
85.0 
84.0 

95  ° 
86  o 
86.0 
86. o 
86 

84. o 
84.0 

Si.; 
Si.o 

84.0 
85.0 
85. 
12.5 

II. o 
8.0 
i4 
ij 
'5 


7.00 
8.00 
8.00 
4.00 
j.oo 
1.40 
2.00 
J  .00 
8.50 

'■7; 
1.30 
1 .70 

2. 10 
2.60 
2  85 
5.60 
6.20 
6.60 
7.50 

6.00 

;•;; 

5-95 

5.00 
4.50 
5.50 
1 .00 
0.68 
0.68 
1 .00 
0.70 


4.92 

7  00 

5-75 
3.}S 
z.zo 

1.84 

1.6} 


i.ij 

1.87 

1-3; 

1 .60 
1. 17 
6.44 

7-51 
7-95 
1.2; 
0.88 
0.90 
0.85 
0.5; 
0.37 
o  48 
o  09 
0.15 

O.II 

0.32 

O.I} 

0.42 


1.6; 
3.12 

1 .76 

I-J7 
1.27 
0.96 
0.66 
0.96 
2.12 

0.35 

o.;o 

o.;; 

0.6; 

o.;o 

I  46 

I  + 

1-4; 

1-3 

i.;o 

I.I 

0.89 

0.6; 

0.6} 

0.9} 

o.z; 

0.18 

0.29 

0.43 

0.23 

o.}6 


LBS.   PER  (LONG)  TON. 


4-7; 

6. 50 
;.oo 
3.80 
4.00 
3.40 

4 
4.30 

4.20 
1.25 
1.80 
1.80 
1.6; 
I  70 
2.00 

2. 60 
2.5;, 

2.;; 

I  50 
0.9c 

0.60 
o.;o 
0.60 
0.2; 
0.22 
0.18 
0.35 
0.20 
0.22 


1.971 

1.994 

1,994 

2.016 

1,88 

1,89 

1,89 

1.97 

2,106 

1.904 

1,97" 
1,904 
1,882 
2.  iz8 
1,926 
1.926 
1,926 
1.9^.6 
1.8S2 
i,S82 
1.84; 
1.83' 
1,88; 
1.904 
i.8;9 
2S0 
246 
179 

;j7 
302 
336 


i;6.8 
179.2 

179.2 
89.6 
67.2 

;3.8 
44.8 

6 
190.4 

39 

29.1 
38.1 
49-3 

;s 

63.8 
125.4 
138.9 
147.8 
168.0 
1344 
124.3 
133-3 
112.0 
100.8 
123 

22.4 

15-4 
i;.2 
22.4 

i;-7 
22.4 


110.2 

i;6.8 
128.8 
7;-7 
49-3 
41.2 
36.5 
42.3 
117.1 

25-3 
42.0 
30.2 

3;.8 

26.2 

144.2 
168.4 
178.1 

28. o 
19.7 
20.2 
19.0 
12  3 
8-3 
10.7 
2.0 
2.9 

2.5 

7.2 
2.9 
9-4 


37.0 

70.0 

39-4 

30 

28.4 

21    5 

14.8 

21.; 

47.5 


12.3 
14.6 
II  .2 
32.7 
33.4 
32.5 
29  I 
33.6 
24.9 
19.9 
14.6 
14. 1 
20.8 
S.6 
4,0 
6  5 
9.6 

; 
8.1 


106.4 
145.6 

III.O 

85.1 
89.6 
76.1 

94  1 
96.} 
94.1 
28.0 
40.3 
40.} 

37  o 

38  I 
44.8 
;8.2 
57.8 
;7.i 
56.0 
33.6 
20.2 
20.2 
13.4 
11 .2 
•3.4 

5.6 
4.6 
4.0 
7.8 
4-5 
4-9 


19.72 

27.86 

21.01 

i;.6s 

15. 75 

13.38 

16.7s 

16. ;i 

18.21 

4  81 

6.65 

7.08 

6.}2 
6.6? 
7.70 
13.53 
14.36 

•4-59 

9.64 

6.45 
3.87 
3.74 
2.68 
2.25 
2.90 
1.07 
o  gi 
0.86 
1-50 
o  80 
1. 14 


*  Middlings,  Canielle.  t  Shipstuff. 

Table,  shozuing  the  proportion  of  solid  matter  and  water  in  100  parts 
each,  of  the  following  articles  of  diet. 


Designation. 


W  heat 

Peas 

Rice 

Beans 

Rye 

Corn 

Oatmeal. . . . 
Wheat  bread 

Mutton 

Chicken 


0  *-■ 

rt 

"s 

13 

87 

87 

13 

86 

14 

86 

14 

86 

14 

86 

14 

74 

26 

51 

49 

29 

71 

17 

73 

Designation. 

I 

Lean  beef 

Eggs 

Veal     

26 
26 
25 
25 
24 

21 

20 

19 
18 
16 

74 
74 
75 
7; 
76 

79 
80 
81 

Pork 

Codfish 

Blcod 

87, 

Pears 

S4 

Designation. 


Carrots 

Beets 

Milk 

Oysters...    . 

Cabbage 

Turnips 

Water  melon 
Cucumber  . . 


534 


HANDY-BOOK   OF   HUSBANDRY. 


Table,  showing  at  one  viezv  when  forty  weeks  {the  period  oj  gestation  in 
a  cow)  will  expire,  from  any  day  throughout  the  year. 


J»n. 

Oct. 

Feb. 

Nov. 

March. 

Dec. 

April. 

Jan. 

May. 

Feb. 

June. 

March. 

I 

8 

I 

8 

I 

6 

I 

6 

I 

5 

I 

8 

2 

9 

2 

9 

2 

7 

2 

7 

2 

6 

2 

9 

J 

10 

3 

10 

3 

8 

3 

8 

3 

7 

3 

10 

4 

II 

4 

11 

4 

9 

4 

9 

4 

.  8 

4 

II 

5 

12 

5 

12 

5 

10 

$ 

10 

5 

9 

S 

12 

6 

M 

6 

I] 

6 

II 

6 

II 

6 

10 

6 

'J 

7 

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7 

14 

7 

12 

7 

12 

7 

1 1 

7 

»4 

8 

IS 

8 

15 

8 

13 

8 

13 

8 

12 

8 

«S 

9 

16 

9 

16 

9 

>4 

9 

14 

9 

13 

9 

l6 

lO 

"7 

10 

17 

10 

15 

10 

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10 

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10 

>7 

II 

18 

II 

18 

II 

16 

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16 

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>$ 

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18 

12 

'9 

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12 

17 

12 

17 

12 

16 

12 

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20 

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20 

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18 

«3 

18 

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>7 

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20 

14 

21 

>4 

21 

14 

>9 

14 

>9 

14 

18 

«4 

21 

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22 

15 

22 

15 

20 

15 

20 

>5 

>9 

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22 

l6 

2} 

16 

ij 

16 

21 

16 

21 

16 

20 

16 

13 

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17 

24 

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22 

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22 

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21 

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14 

l8 

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18 

13 

18 

ij 

18 

22 

18 

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26 

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26 

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27 

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20 

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17 

21 

28 

21 

28 

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22 

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22 

26 

22 

19 

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30 

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30 

n 

28 

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28 

13 

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30 

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i4 

29 

14 

29 

14 

28 

M 

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Nov. 

i4 

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ij 

30 

IS 

30 

March. 

April. 

»S 

I 

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2 

26 

31 

26 

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,  26 

2 

26 

3 

Jan. 

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26 

2 

26 

2 

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3 

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3 

27 

3 

28 

4 

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5 

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29 

6 

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29 

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6 

30 

4 

30 

4 

30 

6 

30 

6 

3« 

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3» 

5 

3« 

7 

USEFUL    TABLES    FOR    FARMERS.  535 

Table,  continued. 


July. 

April. 

Aug. 

May. 

Sept. 

June. 

Oct. 

July. 

Nov. 

Aug. 

Dec. 

Sept. 

I 

7 

I 

8 

I 

8 

I 

8 

I 

8 

I 

7 

2 

8 

2 

9 

2 

9 

2 

9 

2 

9 

2 

8 

3 

9 

3 

10 

3 

10 

3 

10 

3 

10 

3 

9 

4 

10 

4 

II 

4 

II 

4 

II 

4 

II 

4 

10 

5 

II 

y 

12 

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12 

5 

12 

$ 

12 

$ 

II 

6 

12 

6 

13 

6 

13 

6 

13 

6 

13 

6 

12 

7 

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7 

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7 

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7 

14 

7 

14 

7 

13 

8 

H 

8 

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12 

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12 

19 

12 

19 

12 

19 

12 

19 

12 

18 

13 

19 

13 

20 

13 

20 

13 

20 

13 

20 

13 

19 

H 

20 

14 

21 

14 

21 

14 

21 

14 

21 

14 

20 

»S 

21 

15 

22 

IS 

22 

IS 

22 

IS 

22 

IS 

21 

i6 

22 

16 

23 

16 

25 

16 

23 

16 

23 

16 

22 

•7 

23 

17 

24 

17 

24 

17 

24 

17 

24 

17 

23 

i8 

44 

18 

25 

18 

^S, 

18 

25 

18 

25 

18 

24 

•9 

15 

>9 

26 

19 

26 

19 

26 

19 

26 

19 

2S 

zo 

26 

20 

27 

20 

27 

20 

27 

20 

27 

20 

26 

ti 

i7 

21 

28 

21 

28 

21 

28 

21 

28 

21 

27 

tz 

28 

22 

29 

22 

29 

22 

29 

22 

29 

22 

28 

*J 

29 

23 

30 

23 

30 

25 

30 

23 

30 

25 

29 

>4 

30 

24 

31 

July. 

24 

31 

24 

31 

24 

30 

May. 

June. 

24 

I 

Aug. 

Sept. 

Oct. 

*5 

I 

IS 

I 

2S 

2 

2S 

I 

2S 

I 

2S 

I 

«6 

2 

z6 

2 

26 

3 

26 

2 

26 

2 

26 

2 

47 

3 

27 

3 

27 

4 

27 

3 

27 

3 

27 

3 

z8 

4 

28 

4 

28 

S 

28 

4 

28 

4 

28 

4 

»9 

5 

29 

5 

29 

6 

29 

5 

29 

5 

29 

5 

30 

6 

30 

6 

30 

7 

30 

6 

3° 

6 

30 

6 

Ji 

7 

31 

7 

31 

7 

31 

7 

536 


HANDY-BOOK   OF   HUSBANDRY. 


Table,  showing  the  period  of  reproduction  and  gestation  of  domestic 

animals. 


Designation, 


Mare 

Stallion 

Cow   

Bull    

Ewe   

Ram 

Sow 

Boar 

She  Goat 

He  <;oat   .... 

She  Ass 

He    Ass 

She  ButJ'alo. . . 

Bitch 

Uog 

She  Cat 

He  Cat  .  .  .. 
Doe  Rabbit  . . 
Buck   Rabbit  . 

Cock 

Hen 

Turkey 

Duck 

Goose 

Pigeon  

Pea    Hen 

Guinea  Hen. . 
Swan 


Proper  age 
for  repro- 
duction. 


4  years. 

5  " 
J       " 


6  months. 
6      •• 
6      " 


Period  of  the 
power  of  re- 
production 
in  years. 


Number  of 
females  lor 
one  male 


to  II 

to  15 

to  14 

to  10 


to    II 
to   15 


20  to  30 

]0  to  40 

40  to  50 

6  to  10 

20  to  40 


S  to     6 


30 

12  to    15 


Period  of  gestation  and  incubation. 


Shortest  pe- 
riod, days. 


I  Mean  period.  Longest  period, 
I        days.         j  days. 


J" 

240 

146 

109 

i;o 

'36 

'281 
55 


M7 

>54 
"5 

j8o 

}08 
60 

50 
18 


419 

161 

'45 
Vt,\ 

39' 

355 
65 

"56 

55 


14 
30 
3» 
55 

20 
50 
»5 
45 


Tablh,  shozving  tlie  price  oj  pork  per  pound  at  different  prices  per  bushel 

Jar  corn. 


Corn  per  bushel. 
Cents. 

Pork  per  pound. 
Cents. 

Corn  per  bushel. 
Cents. 

Pork  per  pound. 
Cents. 

12^       

?8 

1.78 

40    

4-76 

2. 

z.j8 

2.61 

5.95 

6.54 

60         

7.14 

65       

7.74 

8.57 

"    1 ' 

USEFUL    TABLES    FOR    FARMERS.  537 

Table,  showing  the  contents  of  circular  cisterns  in  barrels  for  each  foot 

in  depth. 

5  feet 4.66 

6  "  6.74 

7  "  913 

8  "  II-9J 

9  "  '5  10 

10  "  18.65 

Ta^^e  J  showing  the  contents  of  circular  cisterns  from  \  foot  to  2^  feet  in 
diameter,  for  each  10  inches  in  depth. 


Diameter. 

Gallons. 

Diameter. 

Gallons. 

4.896 

7J     

ij  

8 

8} 

JIJJ40 

2i   

0* 

}|   

59980 

10     

78.}}? 

4J  

12     

13     

14     

827.450 

cJ. 

148.546 

6     

176.25} 

J5     

6J   

206.855 

ESTIMATING    THE    WEIGHT    OF    HAY    BY    THE    MOW    OR    STACK. 

By  a  careless  oversight  in  the  revision  of  "  Courtney's  Farmers' 
and  Mechanics'  Manual,"  an  error  appeared  in  the  first  edition, 
which  brought  me  so  many  letters  from  all  parts  of  the  country, 
informing  me  that  five  cubic  yards  of  mow  hay  do  not  weigh  one 
ton,  that  it  may  be  well  to  say  here  that  the  weight  depends  very 
much  on  coarseness,  fineness,  dryness,  dampness,  compactness, 
quality,  time  of  making,  weather  during  harvest,  etc.,  etc.,  etc. 
In  view  of  these  changing  conditions  it  is  impossible  to  give  any 
rule  that  is  of  much  value 


538 


HANDY-BOOK    OF    HUSBANDRY. 


Hay  in  a  mow  ten  feet  drop,  put  in  in  good  order,  and  not  too 
ripe  when  cut,  ought  to  average  one  ton  to  each  525  cubic  feet. 
The  compression  increases  rapidly  as  the  height  increases,  and  a 
mow  of  the  same  hay,  fifteen  feet  drop,  would  probably  turn  out 
a  ton  to  475  cubic  feet  if  not  even  to  425  feet.  All  such  guess- 
ing, however,  is  very  hazardous,  and  it  is  always  safer  to  buy  or 
sell  only  by  actual  weight. 

Perhaps  it  would  be  a  safe  formula  to  say,  sell  at  400  cubic  feet 
and  buy  at  600  cubic  feet. 


Table,  showing  the  price  per  cwt.  of  hay,  at  given  prices  per  ton. 


a 
0 

•3 

■0 

■0 

■d 

•a 

-a 

T3 

■d 

U 

0. 

-a 

•5 

■a 

-a 

•5 

-a 

-0 

•0 

■0 

•5 

•a 
c 

e 

c 

a 

c: 

c 

c 

c 

c 

c 

3 

0 

a 

a 

3 

3 

3 

3 

3 

3 

3 

J5 

jC 

'C 

js 

JS 

jC 

xi 

ji 

jS 

JZ 

Ji 

JS 

0 

CL. 

-*> 

- 

IH    , 

'" 

•* 

»rt 

0 

t~ 

SO 

0 

- 

T 

CIS. 

cts. 

$cts. 

$cts. 

$cts. 

$  cts. 

$cts. 

$  CIS. 

$  CIS. 

*cts. 

*  Cts. 

$  Cts. 

4 

10 

20 

40 

60 

80 

I.OO 

1.20 

1.40 

160 

1.80 

2.00 

2.20 

S 

I2 

2S 

so 

75 

1. 00 

1.25 

I.  SO 

•■75 

200 

2.25 

250 

2-75 

6 

>5 

JO 

60 

90 

1.20 

1 50 

1.80 

2.10 

2.40 

2.70 

JOO 

J.  JO 

7 

'7 

J5 

70 

105 

1.40 

•75 

2.10 

2-45 

2.80 

J'5 

J- 50 

J8$ 

8 

20 

40 

80 

1.20 

1.60 

2.00 

2.40 

2.80 

J. 20 

j6o 

4.00 

4.40 

9 

22 

45 

90 

>  JS 

1.80 

2.2s 

2  70 

J«5 

j.5o 

4.05 

4  so 

4-95 

10 

25 

50 

1. 00 

1.50 

2.00 

2.50 

J.OO 

J- 50 

4.00 

4.50 

5.00 

5- 50 

II 

27 

55 

1. 10 

1.65 

2.20 

2-75 

J- JO 

J.8S 

4.40 

49$ 

5.50 

600 

12 

JO 

60 

1.20 

1.80 

2.40 

J.OO 

j6o 

4.20 

4.80 

5.40 

6.00 

6.60 

IJ 

J2 

6S 

l.JO 

>-95 

2.60 

J-2S 

J.90 

4-55 

5.20 

S.85 

6.50 

7'S 

14 

}5 

70 

1.40 

2  10 

2.80 

J   50 

4.20 

4.90 

5.60 

6.  JO 

7.00 

770 

IS 

37 

75 

l.$o 

2.25 

J.OO 

J-7S 

4- SO 

$•25 

6.00 

6.75 

7.50 

8.25 

INDEX. 


PAGE 

Absorbent  Manures 206 

Abortion  in  Cows 422 

Air,  composition  of 27 

Aiderneys 459 

Ammonia,  supply  of. 31 

Ammonia,  formation  of. 31 

Ammonia  in  the  Soil 33 

Ashes 195 

Ashes,  ingredients  found  in 28,  184 

Ashes  of  Plants,  whence  derived...  28 

Barley 164,  258 

Barn  at  Ogden  Farm 52 

Barn,  small 65 

Barn,  ventilator  for  66 

Barn,  Reisig  and  Hexamer's 69 

Barn  -yards 77 

Bladder,  diseases  of,  in  horses 401 

Bleeding  (swine) 445 

Blind  Staggers  (swine)  444 

Breeding  Horses 331 

Buckwheat 258 

Butter 476 

Butter,  Philadelphia 477 

Butter,  washing 48S 

Butter,  salting 489 

Butter,  manner  of  packing 492 

Buying  a  Farm 9 

Caked  Bag  (cows) 414 

Capons,  making 450 

Carrots 272 

Catarrh  (sheep) 435 

Cattle  Hoove  or  Hove 420 

Cattle,  Typhus  Fever 415 

Cattle,  Typhoid  Fever 471 

Cheese 493 

Cheese  Factory 494 

Cheese    Manufacture    in    Domestic 

Dairies 502 

Chemistry,  agricultural 23 

Choking  (cattle) 421 

Cleanliness  in  Stables 511 


PAGE 

Clover 286 

Clover  Hay,  composition  of. 27 

Clover  Seed  Crop 233 

Clover   as    a   Preparatory  Crop  for 

Wheat 252,  288 

Clover  Roots 308,  311 

Clover  Soil,  composition  of. 310 

Colds  (horses) 385 

Colic  or  Gripes  (horses) 387 

Colic  and  Intlammation  of  the  Bowels 

compared  (horses) 393 

Colic  or  Stretches  (sheep) 436 

Corn  Crib 249 

Corn  Fodder,  curing 285 

Corn,  sowed 283 

Costiveness  (horses) 400 

Costiveness  (swine) 444 

Cough  (horses) 386,  398 

Cough  (swine) 444 

Cows,  Caked  Bag 414 

Cows,  etc.,  medical  treatment  of 413 

Cows,  Milk  Fever 415 

Cows,  Puerperal  Fever 415 

Cultivator 150 

Curing  Corn  Fodder 285 

Dairy 455 

Dairy  Cattle,  breeds  of 458 

Dairy  Cows,  feeding  and  manage- 
ment of 469 

Dairy  Women,  advice  to,  by  Chas. 

L.  Flint 506 

Devons 459 

Diseases  of  Animals 37S 

Distemper  in  Colts 400 

Ditches,  digging  of. 103 

Domestic  Animals,  medical  and  sur- 
gical treatment  of 378 

Drainage 82 

Drainage,  effect  of 93 

Draining,  laying  out  the  work 97 

Draining  Outlets 97 

Draining,  maps  for 98 

539 


540 


INDEX. 


PACE 

Draining  (trades icxd 

Draining  Levels lOO 

Draining,  computations  for 102 

Draining,  digging  liie  ditches 103 

Draining  Tiles 104,  1 18 

Draining  Silt  Uasins loS 

Draining,  filling  the  ditches 1 1 1 

Drainage  ol  Ogden  I'arm I12 

l)iaining,  Knglish  system  of I19 

iJraining  with  Stones 124 

Draining    with    Plank,   IJrush,  and 

Poles 126 

Drains,  lateral 98 

Drains,  main 98 

Dutch  Cattle 458 

Earth  Closets 179 

Exercise  for  Stock 513 

Exhausting  Manures iy2 

P'arm,  how  to  buy 9 

Farm  buildings 50 

Farm  Roads 79 

Farm   Drainage 85 

Farm-yard  Manure 157 

Farm  Teams,  treatment  of 346 

Farm  Morses 347 

Farm  Stock,  classifications  of 514 

Farriery 404 

Fattening  Stock,  management  of....  515 

Feeding  Slock,  general  principles...  516 

Fences  39 

Fertilizers,  special 200 

Fever  in  Cattle 415 

Fi.sh  Guano 202 

Fish,  A.  L.,  on  Domestic  Cheese- 
Making 503 

Flint,  ('has.  L.,  Letter  to  a  Dairy 

Woman 5°^ 

Flint,  Chas.  L.,  quotations  from  Nu- 
tritive Equivalents 521,  522 

I'ood  of  Plants 28,  29 

Food,  economy  of 364 

Foot  Rot  in  Sheep 425 

Forage  Crops 283 

Founder 384 

Fresh  Water  for  Stock 513 


Gapes  in  Cliickens 447 

Garget  (cows) 414 

Gales 47 

George  Geddes,  t|uotation  from 231 

Goodenough,  system  of  Shoeing 413 

Grades  of  Drains loo 

Grain  Crops 242 

Grease  or  Scratches  ^horses)...  383,  402  j  Lateral  Drains. 


Green  Sand  Marl 196 

Green  Crops  as  Manure 212 

Growing  Animals,  management  of..  514 

Grub  in  the  Head  (sheepj 433 

Guano 201 

Harrow 147 

Hay  Clover,  composition  of 27 

Herefords 459 

Hinges  for  Gates 48 

H<jme<)pathic  Veterinary 3S2 

Hoof  Rot  in  .Sheep 425 

Hoove  or  Hove  (cattle) 42c 

Horned  Cattle,  medical  treatment  of  413 

Horse  Preeiiing 331 

Horse  Hoe 150 

Horseshoeing 406 

Horses 331 

Horses,    management    by    omnibus 

companies  in  New  York 348 

Horses,  medical  and  surgical  treat- 
ment of. 380 

Horses'  Hoofs 406 

Horses,  Colds 385 

lorses.  Colic  or  Gripes 387 

luises,  Colic  and  InHammation  of 

the  Bowels  compared 393 

lorses,  Costiveness 400 

Joises,  Grease  or  Scratches...  383,  402 
Horses,  Inflammation  of  the  bowels 

3^8,  395 
lorses,  Inflammation  of  the  brain.  384 
lorses,  Inflammation  of  the  Lungs  396 

lorses,  Strangles 4CX3 

lorses.  Worms 401 

ndian  Corn 233,  242 

luiian  Corn,  cultivation  of 243 

ndian  Corn,  harvesting 248 

iiHammation  ot  the  brain  (horses).  384 
ntlammation  of  the  bowels  (horses) 

388.  395 
nflnmmation  of  the  bowels  and  Colic 

compared  (horses) 393 

nllainmaiion  of  the  Lungs  (horses)  396 
iitlanimalion  of  the  Lungs  (swine)  444 
Ich  (swine) 444 

Jerseys 459 

Jt)linson,  Prof.  S.  W.,  on   Milk  and 
butter 4S4 

Kidney  Worm  (swine) 444 

Latches  for  Gates 49 


9« 


INDEX, 


541 


PAGE 

Laying  out  Drains 97 

Leasing  a  Farm 17 

Levels  for   Draining 100 

Lice  on  Poultry 44S 

Lime 200,  207 

Lime  in  Plants 1S4 

Lime,  Prof.  Johnson  on 207 

Lime  Plants 220 

Live  Stock 328 

Live  Stock,  winter  feeding  and  man- 
agement of 510 

London,  sewers  of 176 

Main  Drains 98 

Mangel  Wurzel 275 

Manure,  Dr.  Voelcker  on 159 

Manure    Heaps,   Dr.    Voelcker   on 

drainage  of 163 

Manure,  poultry 173 

Manure,  night-soil 174 

Manures 154 

Manures,  classification  of 156 

Manures,  farm-yard 157 

Manures,  mineral 183 

Manures,  lasting 191 

Manures,  exhausting 192 

Manures,  special 200 

Manures,  solvent 202 

Manures,  absorbent 206 

Manures,  mechanical 206 

Manures,  green 212 

Manures,  general  conclusions 214 

Marl 196 

Mechanical  Manures 206 

Medical  and  Surgical  Treatment  of 

Domestic  Animals 378 

Milch  Cows,  selection  of. 464 

Milk  Fever  (cows) 415 

Milk,  selling 455 

Milk,  analysis  of 457 

IMilk  and  its  Products 475 

Milk-House  at  Ogden  Farm 482 

Milk  Rooms 482 

Milk  and  Butter,  Prof.  S.  W.  John- 
son on 484 

Milking  Cows,  management  of 515 

Millet  for  forage 326 

Mineral  Manures 183 

AluUer 132 

Neat  Cattle 351 

Night-soil 174 

Nitric  Acid 31 

Nitrogen 30 

Nitrogen,  proportion  of,  in  various 

cultivated  plants 30 


I'AGB 

Nitrogen  in  Plants,  sources  of 31 

Nitrogen  in  Animal  Substances 23 

Oats 234,  257 

Oats  for  Forage 324 

Ogden  Farm,  barn 52 

Ogden  Farm,  drainage  of 112 

Ogden  Farm,  milk-house  at 482 

Out-of-door  Operations,  how  to  com- 
mence       19 

Outlets  for  Drains 97 

Oxen,  etc.,  medical  treatment  of....   413 

Parsnips 282 

Philadelphia  Butter 477 

Phosphate  of  Lime,  how  made  188 

Phosphate  of  Lime,  how  applied...    190 

Phosphoric  Acid 34,   186 

Phospiioric  Acid,  proportion  of,  in 

various  cultivated  plants 36 

Plank,  Brush,  and  Pole  Drains 126 

Plant- Feeding  Materials, proportions 

of,  in  soils 26 

Plants,  decay  of 23 

Plants,  composition  of. 23 

Plants,  constituent  parts  of 27 

Plants,  food  of 29 

Plowing 127 

Plowing,  fall 20 

Plowing,  time  for 132 

Plowing,  how  to  be  done 133 

Plowing  from  center  of  the  field....    137 

Plowing,  sub-soil I40 

Plowing,  trench 143 

Plowing  with  three  horses  abreast..   144 

Plows 129 

Potash 37,  194 

Potash,  proportion  of,  in  various  cul- 
tivated plants 37,  195 

Potash  Plants 220 

Poultry 354,  445 

Poultry,  manure  of 173 

Poultry,  prevention  of  diseases 449 

Puerperal  Fever  (cows) 415 

Puerperal  Fever  (sheep) 436 

Puerperal    Fever    (sheep),  Samuel 

Thorne  on 439 

Pulverizing  the  Soil 145 

Pure  Air  in  stables 514 

Quincy,  Josiah,  on  Soiling 367 

Regularity  of  Feeding,  etc 5'^ 

Restoring  Fertility 26 

Roads 79 

Roller 145 


542 


INDEX. 


PACK 

Root  Crops 260 

Roots  for  Use  on  tlie  Farm 263 

Roots,  transplaiiting 278 

Rotation  of  Crops 216 

R<nip 446 

Rutabaga  Turnips 265 

Rye 257 

Rye  for  Forage 325 

Salt,  best  kind  for  the  dairy 490 

Salting  IJutter 4S9 

Scab  (slieej)) 432 

Scratciies  or  Grease  (horses) ^S^ 

Scrofula  (swine) 442 

Sea-Weed  as  Manure 199 

Sewers  of  London 176 

Sheep 351 

Sheep,  Catarrh 435 

Slieep,  Colic  or  Stretches 436 

Sheep,  diseases  of 425 

Sheep,  Grub  in  the  Head 433 

Sheep,  medical  treatment  of 422 

Sheep,  Puerperal  Fever 436 

Sheep,     Puerperal    Fever,    Samuel 

Thome  on 439 

Sheep,  Scab 432 

Shoeing,  Goodenough  system  of.....   412 

Silica  Plants 220 

Silt  Dasins loS 

Soil 24 

Soil,  composition  of. 23 

Soil,  practical  view  of. 26 

Soil,  restoration  of. 26 

Soils,  cause  of  unproductiveness 26 

Soils,  mechanical  ingredients  of. 25 

Soiling  and  Pasturing 361 

Soiling,  Josiah  Quincy  on 367 

Soiling,  product  of  milk  under 366 

Solvent  ^Ianures 202 

Sorghum 2S6 

Sowed  Corn 283 

Spring  Wheat 255 

Steaming  Food 523 

Stone  Drains  , 124 

Stone  Walls 44 

Strangles  (horses) 400 

Stretches  or  Colic  (sheep) 436 

Sub-soil  Plowing 140 

Super])hosphate  of  Lime,  how  made  188 
Superphosphate  of  Lime,  how  ap- 
plied     190 


PACB 

Swedes 265 

Swine 350 

Swine,  medical  treatment  of 440 

Swine,  Ulind  Staggers  in 444 

Swine,  Weeding 445 

Swine,  C')stiveness 444 

.Swine,  Cough 444 

Swine,  Inllammalion  of  the  Lungs..  444 

Swine,   Itch 444 

.Swine,  Kidney  Worm 444 

Swine,  Scrofula 442 

Temperature  of  Stables 512 

Theory 22 

Thorne,  Samuel, on  Puerperal  Fever 

{'^li«:«^P) 439 

Transplanting  Roots 278 

Trencii  Plowing 143 

Turnijjs,  Rutabaga 205 

Typhoid  Fever  (cattle) 419 

Typhus  Fever  (cattle) 419 

Unproductive  Soils 26 

Usclul  Tables  for  Farmers 526-538 

Ventilator  for  Barn 66 

Voelcker,  Dr.  Augustus,  on    farm- 
yard manure 159 

Voelcker,    Dr.     Augustus,    on    the 

drainage  of  manure  heaps 163 

Voelcker,  Dr.  Augustus,  on  clover 

as  a  preparatory  crop  for  wheat...  288 

Washing  Butter 4S8 

Water-Table 25 

Weeks,  Gardner  B.,  on  cheese  fac- 
tories   493 

Wheat 235,  251 

Wheat,  average  yield  of,  in  U.  S 36 

Wheat,  average  yield   of,  in  Eng- 
land   36 

Wheat,  Winter 254 

Wheat,  Spring  255 

Wheat,  ingredients  of 292 

Windmill 57 

Winter  Feeding  and  Management 

of  Livestock 510 

Winter  Wheat 254 

Wool  Growing 351 

Working  Animals,  management  of..  515 

Worms  (horses) 401 


S^        ^      Xf 


(JU  >  ^ 


